632. The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith (1978)

Running Time: 122 minutes
Directed By: Fred Schepisi
Written By: Fred Schepisi, from novel by Thomas Keneally
Main Cast: Tom E. Lewis, Freddy Reynolds, Rey Barrett, Jack Thompson, Angela Punch McGregor
Click here to view the trailer

CINEMA FROM DOWN UNDER

If I'm not mistaken (which I very well may be) this is the first Australian film I've taken in from THE BOOK. This one's been staring at me for quite sometime, as it sat on my Netflix instant queue and I figured I'd better watch it, before it disappeared. FYI - this is only available to watch via the instant portion of Netflix and IS NOT available for at home delivery.

Jimmy Blacksmith (Lewis) is a half-caste Aborigine, who is somewhat favored by the white settlers of the Australian plain. First, he is taken in by a preacher and his wife and taught a few lessons, as he heads out into the world to find work and make something of himself. Jimmy eventually lands work building fences for several of the white settlers. For the most part they treat him badly, often shorting his pay and degrading him. However, Jimmy rarely shows defiance and is, for the most part, a patient and obedient worker. Jimmy tries his best to distance himself from his Aboriginal family, but is to loyal to totally forget them. Later, Jimmy marries a white woman and she becomes pregnant. During her pregnancy, Jimmy begins working for the Newby family. Again, the Newby family look down at Jimmie and don't approve of the marriage between him and a full blooded white woman. When the baby is born, it becomes clear that the child isn't Jimmie's and after the Newby family try and convince Jimmie's wife to leave him, Jimmie cracks, beginning a violent rampage of revenge against the white people.

There's a lesson to be learned by watching this film, unfortunately it's a lesson that I had already accepted and one that I didn't need to have repeated. If you're so close-minded and ignorant as to be racist toward a particular people, then this is certainly a film that you should be forced to watch. Although anyone that close-minded and ignorant would probably still leave this film, without taking the lesson with them. I tend to hate movies that harp on the idea that racism is bad, but that's simply because I am already aware of that fact. This one kind of reminded me of "Crash", in that it came off as a little bit preachy about the subject of anti-racism, although not nearly as preachy as "Crash". This film was a tedious MoFo and I had a really hard time getting through it, without glancing at the clock about once every ten minutes.

SPOILER ALERT!

It started out good enough, a simple story that resembled international Oscar bait, about an Aboriginal boy who is treated ill. The plot is slow and dull, until the point in which Jimmie snaps, axe murdering the Newby women and children and becoming a fugitive. That's the real climax of the story, because following that, the film once again slips into a very boring and dull state, as Jimmie and his brother Mort are shown wandering through the hills of Australia, escaping their captors. Nothing really ever happens, besides the occasional instance when Jimmie and Mort come across another family that crossed Jimmie and a brief bit of murdering commences. Then it's back to wandering through the forest again, as Jimmie rambles on about starting a war. Once in a while they'll snap to the white side, where the white folks talk about the justice they intend to carry out. I'll stop there, in hopes that you get the picture.

My other main problem is that it was hard to get a grasp on the characters, most notably Jimmie. Was I supposed to be rooting for Jimmie or opposing him? He was the victim of heavy oppression from the whites, but on the other hand, he really didn't have the demeanor of someone who deserved my sympathies. It's not as if this character was such an obedient and timid boy that, when his family was being starved, we wanted so badly for him to stand up for himself. From the beginning, Jimmie seemed to have a short temper and it that much of a surprise when he finally snapped. Yeah, I have no idea whether I was supposed to be for him, against him or neutral. Maybe I was simply intended to view the story and allow myself to form my own opinion of Jimmie, but maybe I didn't care enough to do that.

On the bright side, the cinematography is brilliant and the backdrop of beautiful Australia provides a visual feast for the eyes. The acting is pretty strong too, as sometimes I actually felt like I was watching a documentary, forgetting that these were actors putting on a show. Everything else ranges from average to worse, with the plot and timing be the worst of all. The film didn't make good use of it's allotted time and thus, the film felt like it dragged on forever.

RATING: 5.5/10 Well, the hidden gem that I always hope to find, but some might take to it. As for this guy, it's a thumbs in the middle.

MOVIES WATCHED: 381
MOVIES LEFT TO WATCH: 620

December 31, 2011 1:02am