''Backroads'' is a 1977

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n film directed by

Phillip Noyce Phillip Roger Noyce (born 29 April 1950) is an Australian film and television director. Since 1977, he has directed over 19 feature films in various genres, including historical drama ('' Newsfront'', '' Rabbit-Proof Fence'', '' The Quiet Amer ...

. Two strangers – one white (Jack), one Aboriginal (Gary) – steal a car in western

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

and drive around the coast. The original characters came from a story by Adelaide writer John Emery, with whom Noyce had worked on a short film. Australian reviews of the film were mixed, and it opened commercially in only one cinema.

Plot

Jack and Gary steal a car and head off around the back roads of Western New South Wales. They pickup a trio of fellow travellers – Gary's uncle Joe, a French hitchhiker and an embittered woman. Joe drunkenly shoots a stranger and they are chased by police. The police arrest Joe and Jack and shoot Gary.

Cast

* Bill Hunter as Jack *

Gary Foley Gary Edward Foley (born 1950) is an Aboriginal Australian activist of the Gumbaynggirr people, academic, writer and actor. He is best known for his role in establishing the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in Canberra in 1972 and for establishing an Ab ...

as Gary *Zac Martin as Joe *

Terry Camilleri Terrance Camilleri (born 7 November 1949) is a Maltese-born Australian actor who has performed actively in both the United Kingdom and United States. He is best recognised for portraying Emperor Napoleon I in the blockbuster comedy film '' Bi ...

as Jean Claude * Julie McGregor as Anna * Essie Coffey as Aboriginal Woman *Allan Penney as Shopkeeper

Production

John Emery had written one of Noyce's short films at film school, ''Caravan Park'', and pitched him another story, ''The First Day of Spring'', about a young aboriginal. They developed the script together.David Stratton, ''The Last New Wave: The Australian Film Revival'', Angus & Robertson, 1980 p204-205 Gary Foley agreed to act provided that he would be responsible for the film's indigenous content. The film was mostly shot on location near Bourke and Brewarrina in western New South Wales and was funded in part by a $25,000 grant from the Creative Development Branch of the

Australian Film Commission The Australian Film Commission (AFC) was an Australian government agency was founded in 1975 with a mandate to promote the creation and distribution of films in Australia as well as to preserve the country's film history. It also had a product ...

. Shooting finished in April 1977 when the finance ran out. Noyce applied to the Australian Film Commission for money to finish the film, however he decided instead to launch Backroads at the

Sydney Film Festival The Sydney Film Festival is an annual competitive film festival held in Sydney, Australia, usually over 12 days in June. A number of awards are given, the top one being the Sydney Film Prize. , the festival's director is Nashen Moodley. Histo ...

in 1977.

Reception

The film received mixed reviews in Australia but achieved a better response overseas.

References

External links

* *
''Backroads''
at Oz Movies {{DEFAULTSORT:Backroads 1977 films 1977 drama films Australian drama films 1970s English-language films Films directed by Phillip Noyce Films set in New South Wales 1977 directorial debut films English-language drama films