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An affecting, deeply heartfelt film. If you're reading this, you probably guessed that already.
Here's something you might not guess from a quick glance at the DVD cover, though - or closer scrutiny, for that matter: a terrific behind-the-scenes documentary.
Rabbit-Proof Fence has a lot going for it - a richly compelling story, a sensational musical score by Peter Gabriel (in the vein of his Passion music from Last Temptation of Christ), a well-known director with a sure hand and a keen eye for detail, etc., etc.
When all is said and done, though, it all comes down to the kids' performances. One false note there, and the whole movie risks collapse.
I'm not a fan of DVD extras as a rule - I'm of the school that believes the thing should speak for itself. Also, you and I can pick any number of DVDs that advertised fanta-bulous extras, only to deliver pallid 7-minute "documentaries" and thinly disguised commercial ads for the movie itself - ie. "making-of" featurettes that are actually thinly disguised theatrical trailers.
Well, the documentary on this DVD is a stunner - almost reason alone to buy the disc.
The 42-minute documentary - almost half the length of the feature itself - focuses on Phillip Noyce's casting, vetting and eventual direction of the three kids in question.
Other reviewers have commented here about how striking 11-year-old Evelyn Sampi was in the pivotal role. What's remarkable about the documentary on this DVD is that you get to see exactly what was involved in bringing her out of her shell. It's a candid, affecting, honest portrayal, and Noyce comes across as a deeply humane, empathetic person, about as far removed from the cliche of the Hollywood tyrant as you can get. Sampi, for her part, is clearly special - though, watching this, it's easy to worry about where she may go from here.
There's a telling moment in the documentary when Noyce, trying to life her spirits at a magazine photo shoot, says, "You're going to be like Nicole Kidman" (Noyce directed Kidman in her break-through role in Dead Calm, you may recall) and Sampi fires back, without missing a beat: "Cathy Freeman." (Cathy Freeman, as you may know, is Australia's world record holder and Olympic champion middle-distance runner, and a hero to her fellow aborigines.) The documentary also gives credit to the kids' acting coach, a trained aborigine actor and acting teacher, and it not only tells you about her but shows her working with the kids.
And let's hear it, too, for Kenneth Branagh, who was brave enough to play a real prick, without once trying to soften the edges. (One minor complaint: This is not Branagh's film; I suspect even he is embarassed to see his face dominate the DVD and movie poster's cover so much. There's a stunning image on the DVD menu of Sampi, braced against the wind, holding one of her younger siblings in her arms, the wind and dust playing across their faces: That would have made a much more striking cover. Oh, well, you know what they say: never judge a DVD by its cover. And never judge a movie by its poster.)
I thoroughly enjoyed Rabbit-Proof Fence.
I dreaded it at first, thinking it was going to be yet another one of those swallow-your-medicine TV movies-of -the-week. You know the ones: the ones with colons in their titles, that make you feel crummy just for being alive. But Noyce's humanity, his eye for human expressions and the deeply moving performances from the kids - all the kids - won me over.
The documentary is what makes this DVD special, though. (A minor caveat: the documentary, long as it is, focuses exclusively on the shaping of the kids' performances, so if you're looking for other background on the making of the film, or a documentary about the historical context in which the events unfolded, you won't find it here.)
If you appreciated this film as much as I did, do seriously consider getting this DVD. It doesn't have any of those fancy "special edition" or "director's cut" labels emblazoned on it, and the cover isn't really reperesentative of the movie inside, but it's special just the same.
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Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2005
- Reviewed in the United States on January 4, 2009
Top reviews from other countries
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Antonio PettenaReviewed in Italy on December 10, 2014
Il dramma dei bambini mezzosangue aborigeni fino agli anni 70 di questo secolo trasformato in un'epopea
- Ferguson Elizabeth AnneReviewed in the United Kingdom on March 10, 2010
So glad I saw this film !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
- Mountain BikerReviewed in Canada on December 10, 2023
Brilliant and inspiring movie about a truly dark chapter of Australian (and Canadian, etc) history
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