Rabbit-Proof Fence ★★★½ 2002 (PG) Fascinating, true story of three mixed-race Aboriginal girls in 1930s Australia, who escape their forced incarceration at an institution designed to train such children, snatched from their parents by the government, as domestic workers. Embarking on an incredible 1,500 mile journey to return home, Molly (Sampi), Daisy (Sansbury) and Gracie (Monaghan), follow the line of a fence—the longest unbroken piece of fence ever created—built by the government to keep out the rabbits that had overrun the farmlands. Hunted by the authorities, the girls struggle to survive in a heartbreaking and riveting adventure. Mailman is a sympathetic white woman who helps the girls along the way while Branagh plays Neville, a first-class bigot who oversaw the racist policies that the Australian government enforced until 1970. Neophyte leads are appealingly natural. Based on a book by Doris Pilkington, daughter of one of the girls. 95m/C VHS, DVD. AU GB Everlyn Sampi, Tianna Sansbury, Laura Monaghan, Kenneth Branagh, David Gulpilil, Deborah Mailman, Jason Clarke, Garry McDonald, Ningali Lawford, Myarn Lawford;
Director:
Phillip Noyce;
Writer:
Christine Olsen;
Writer:
Christopher Doyle;
Cameo:
Peter Gabriel. Natl. Bd. of Review '02: Director (Noyce).
