Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3436 in DVD
• Released on: 2003-09-15
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Aspect ratio: 1.77:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, Italian
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 90 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Based on a true story, Rabbit-proof Fence moves with dignified grace from its joyful opening scenes to a conclusion that's moving beyond words. The title refers to a 1,500-mile fence separating outback desert from the farmlands of Western Australia. It's here, in 1931, that three aboriginal girls are separated from their mothers and transported to a distant training school, where they are prepared for assimilation into white society by a racist government policy. Gracie, Daisy, and Molly belong to Australia's "stolen generations", and this riveting film (based on the book by Molly's daughter, Doris Pilkington Garimara) follows their escape and tenacious journey homeward, while a stubborn policy enforcer (Kenneth Branagh) demands their recapture.

Director Phillip Noyce chronicles their ordeal with gentle compassion, guiding his untrained, aboriginal child actors with a keen eye for meaningful expressions. Their performances evoke powerful emotions (subtly enhanced by Peter Gabriel's excellent score), illuminating a shameful chapter of Australian history while conveying our universal need for a true and proper home. --Jeff Shannon

From the studio
'Following the Rabbit Proof Fence' Documentary

Feature Commentary with Director Phillip Noyce

Synopsis
Set in Australia in 1931, RABBIT-PROOF FENCE tells the story of a government policy that required "half-caste" children (whose mothers were Aboriginal and whose fathers were white) to be taken from their homes by the authorities to be trained to work as servants. Based on the true story of Molly Craig, Philip Noyce's film of small gestures and few words follows the odyssey of three young girls who escaped from the government's training facility and, using the country's long stretches of rabbit-proof fences as their guide, walked 1500 miles to get back home.
Told squarely from Molly's point of view, RABBIT-PROOF FENCE also highlights the Australian government's treatment of Aboriginies by A.O. Neville (Kenneth Branagh), the legal guardian of the country's indigenous people. His plan to "breed out" the Aboriginal blood of the half-castes is marked by a cool calculation and moral blindness that stands out in sharp contrast to Molly's spiritual and intuitive relationship to the people and places she encounters on her journey.

Customer Reviews

Powerful
I can't remember why I bought this dvd but was so glad I did, it remains as one of the most powerful memorable films I own along with Hotel Rwanda. The fact that its based on real life makes it that more amazing. The cinematography is brilliant and the story will have you feeling their hope and pain throughout right till the end.
If you want to be inspired, your eyes opened and your life that little bit enriched with history get this film. If you are a viewer that is moved by powerful actions and emotions, see this film and you will be glad you bought it.

Follow the fence
Rabbit-Proof Fence is a remarkable story of brutal racism and the courage of three children. Until as recently as 1970, Australia's harsh policy toward its aboriginal people allowed for the forcible capture of half-white children and their relocation in concentration-camp-like centers, for the purpose of training them to be domestic servants in white society. This film tells the true story of three such girls who escaped from the center in 1932, and walked 1500 miles back to their family. Their only marker, across the desolate desert and bush, was the world's longest fence, the "rabbit-proof fence," which eventually led them home.

This story of Australia's misguided attempt to help the aborigines "in spite of themselves" has an excellent script and direction. The children, all non-actors, are wonderfully convincing and sympathetic. Kenneth Branagh has a small role as the government official who tries to recapture the girls. David Gulpilil plays the aboriginal tracker who relentlessly follows the girls, and his villainous character was truly frightening. The sweeping photography of the arid bush shows just how tremendous the girls' accomplishment was. Rabbit-Proof Fence is a very sad but important story and I heartily recommend it.

Superb rendition of amazing story
Philip Noyce has transformed an epic journey into an example of visual poetry. Three girls, kidnapped and destined for "assimilation" into white Australian society, escape their "protectors". In an astonishing journey, pursued by government police and an Aborigine tracker, they evade authority's clutches. After seven weeks and eighteen hundred kilometres journey, they reach home. Perhaps the longest foot journey in Australia.

Noyce beautifully captures the harsh environment traversed by the trio, even though the filming was far distant from the actual location. The girls must use every available cover and device to escape capture, and Noyce maintains the tension throughout the film. Using numerous close-ups to convey feeling, you're kept aware that flight from captivity isn't a social event. Encounters with either white or fellow Aborigines force reserve, suspicion and hesitation - talk is minimised, even among the three escapees. This is a highly visual film in a setting providing oppotunities for lush images.

It is the people, however, that give this film its true grandeur. Clearly, the fleeing girls aren't professionals before the camera. Everlyn Sampi's facial expressions seize the soul in nearly every scene. She's aware of the burden she's carrying, leading the escape, keeping them free, thwarting detection and pursuit, finding the track. David Gulpilil, the Aborigine tracker, also rivets the eye as he leads the quest to return the girls to the mission. How does he feel in pursuit of his own kind in the employ of the dominant, racist, white society? Kenneth Branagh might have absorbed the soul of A.O. Neville so graphically does he portray the "Protector of Aborigines". Called "The Devil" by Aborigines and seeming to personify all the worst aspects of a racist society, Neville was simply an extreme example of his society's mores. Branagh clearly understands this fully, playing the role with marvelous reserve.

This DVD is almost a novelty for other aspects. The discriminating viewer will soon discover that the "Special Features" aren't something to by-pass lightly. Instead of the usual long-winded interviews with directors, producers and actors, Noyce, with his usual skill offers something truly captivating. He takes you on a "hand-held camera" journey to solicit the acting team from remote Australian communities. We are introduced to the various children discovered, assessed and chosen for the roles. These are but children suddenly confronted with a new world. Their reactions are poignant and inspiring.

Finally, the viewer will discover yet another level of reward in watching the film again with the voice-over commentary enabled. Fresh surprises await the patient as Noyce discusses how the film came to him and his enthusiasm for it. He relates his dealings with all the cast. It is David Gulpilil who, with infinite subtlety, transforms the book's tracker into a wholly new and realistic character. Every praise that can be imparted to the three children suddenly becomes remote as you discover Gulpilil manifests the two centuries of Aborigine-white encounters. Buy this film in anticipation of many unexpected revelations. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]