John Grant, a teacher working in the remote Australian town of Tiboonda, is under a financial bond with his Government job. At the end of term before Christmas holidays, he plans to visit his girlfriend in Sydney. In order to catch a flight to Sydney, he takes a train to the nearby mining town called Bundanyabba (or “The Yabba”), and plans to stay there overnight before moving on further to the airport. But things go grossly out of script as he is engulfed by the Yabba and its disconcerting residents
Language:
English
Running Time:
108 min
Rating:
R
Release date:
9 October 1971
Directed by:
Ted Kotcheff
Produced by:
George Willoughby
Written by:
Evan Jones
Based on:
Outback by
Kenneth Cook
Starring:
Gary Bond
Donald Pleasence
Chips Rafferty
Sylvia Kay
John Meillon
Music by:
John Scott
Shot by:
Brian West
Editing by:
Anthony Buckley
Distributed by:
United Artists
Drafthouse Films

What’s Hot

  • Gary Bond plays the vulnerable protagonist John Grant to perfection as he gets sucked into the wild world of the Yabba and is pressured into gambling, alcohol & hunting. His fervent effort in capturing the essence of a person stuck in a harsh environment has yielded great results.
  • All the supporting actors add to the atmosphere of the film. Headed by celebrated actor, Chips Rafferty who plays the cop, the masterful performances from Donald Pleasence (who played the RAF Flight Lieutenant Colin Blythe in The Great Escape (PUT IMDb link)) as Doc Tydon and Jack Thompson as the rebellious Dick who sport rugged Australian looks add to menacing feeling generated by the Yabba.
  • The cinematography by Brian West is exemplary. His camera work in the ‘Two Up’ flip coin game and the 360-degree panning shot showcasing the vast emptiness of Tiboonda stay with you for a long time. The perceptive score by British composer John Scott is apt and makes you feel claustrophobic as the town swallows John Grant.
  • The locations and the art direction play a vital part in showing the alienation of the protagonist. In fact one can say that the film is almost as good as a horror film which gets under even the watcher’s skin.

What’s Not

  • The film is absolutely not for the faint hearted as it features extreme violence and gore. The Kangaroo hunting sequences are pretty tough to digest. One wonders how it got past the Animal Rights groups.
  • People expecting a thrilling ride will be in for a disappointment here as the film depicts how the Yabba grows on the protagonist steadily like a slow poison.

Badges

Verdict

Verdict Stamp

Wake in Fright, is an authentic yet shocking and disturbing tale set in the outback country of Australia, which is rightly ranked by many as one of the earliest classics to have come out of Australian cinema.