The Drover's Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson

A lot of (Australian) people don't like Australian movies. This one takes us back to the glory days with a solid story, good script, characters and across-the-board acting. With the broadest part of the germ of the idea picked from Henry Lawson's short story The Drovers wife (1892), it examines the life of a woman living an isolated life with her children in Australia's Snowy Mountains while her drover husband is away with the cattle. As the layers of the story unpeel the complexity of life on the frontier are revealed. Life is hard and Purcell's character, Molly Johnson, battles to protect and provide for her kids. Reflecting Henry Lawson's drover's wife she's their protector, but this is where the stories depart. This film looks at themes and issues, as current today as they were in the 1800s. Rob Collins is great as Yadaka an aboriginal man on the run, as is Malachi Dower-Roberts who plays Molly's son, Danny. He forms a friendship with Yadaka which helps build trust between Molly and Yadaka whose back-story is interesting and central to the film. Sam Reid plays Sergeant Klintoff who's come to the high country from the UK via South Africa with his wife, Louisa (Jessica De Gouw). He's a good man with a tough job in a small settlement and a vast territory to cover. This is a movie of secrets, about heroism and toughness, and ultimately is positive. Some will say some of the issues (black/white, male/female relations) dealt with are heavy-handed, but I don't think so. It's what happened and is put together to depict the realities of life on the frontier of 'civilisation'. Some of the key points are so subtle you don't realise it's happening until the horse has bolted and destinies are set. There are gaps in the story (for example, how does a very remote place with a minute population have a resident Magistrate let alone a Judge?), but they're not serious, and at the end you're left with an overall satisfaction and in my case, a sense of optimism. Written, produced, directed and acted by Leah Purcell - big job, well done.

We are so accustomed to seeing stories told through the eyes of men. When women or Indigenous people tell their stories some people find it 'virtue signalling' or boring. Where's the western action? The storyline of this film is harrowing, but I didn't find it difficult to watch. It was intensely emotional but neither emotion nor violence was gratuitous. It is incredibly beautiful, the interaction with the landscape carries all the power and mystery of our continent. The story unfolds gradually, and with a definite pace. This move is nothing short of a work of art, so moving, the story line so perfectly crafted, the acting so r powerful, I had to sit for a while afterwards to gather myself.

Serious understatement to say this is an astonishing achievement, Ms Purcell's passion project is riveting and spare from beginning to end. It also takes no prisoners so prepare for your sensibilities to be assaulted.

The Drover's Wife (2021) is a powerful, incisive movie that tells the story of a lonely bushwoman who struggles to raise her children and run the family farm while her husband is away. The movie is both a touching portrait of a mother's love and a searing indictment of the isolation and racism that continue to plague rural Australia.

Leah Purcell (who also wrote and directed) gives a powerhouse performance as the title character, bringing both strength and vulnerability to her portrayal of a woman who is fighting for her survival in a hostile environment. Rob Collins, as Yadaka, the Indigenous drover who comes to her aid, is also excellent, and the two have a great chemistry on screen.

The cinematography by Mark Wareham is breathtaking, and the Australian landscape is captured in all its harsh beauty reflecting the harshness of what first nation people had to endure following white settlement. The Drover's Wife is a slow-paced movie, but it's never dull. Purcell takes her time to develop the characters and their relationships, and the result is a deeply moving film that will stay with you long after the credits have rolled.

The soundtrack by Salliana Seven Campbell is also worth mentioning. It's haunting and beautiful, and it perfectly complements the mood of the movie although, on just a few occasions, it didn't quite resonate, for me, with what was happening on screen.

The Drover's Wife explores many themes in multiple layers. For example, the relationship between the drover and his wife is complicated by the fact that he is away for long periods of time, and she is left to fend for herself and their children. There's also the issue of race, as Yadaka is constantly reminded that he is an outsider in a white man's world. And then there are the themes of isolation, both literal and metaphorical, as well as the tyranny of distance. There is

Purcell has said that she wanted to make a movie about love, loss, grief, and country. And she has succeeded admirably. The Drover's Wife is a stunning achievement. It's must-see.

If you see one movie this year or don't go out to see movies often, this one is a must see. Leah Purcell did the short story some incredible justice. The landscape and story are just perfect.