Ealing Studios were on a high after the success of The Overlanders and wanted to make more Australian films, of which this was the first... however the shooting was extremely problematic (rain, government interference, union troubles, the British quota wars of the time), the budget blew out and the resulting movie was a critical and commercial disappointment. So it has this bad reputation. Yet it was surprisingly enjoyable.
The flaws are obvious - there are far (far) too many speeches, and scenes of miners going "hooray" and some such; there's no real characterisation, just actors in beards and period costume yelling at each other. The villains (the government) aren't that villainous - we meed the Commissioner very early but never get to know him; he doesn't even seem that bad (was this because the English filmmakers had an instinctive sympathy for these English characters as opposed to the Irish and Europeans who comprised the bulk of the miners?).
Chips Rafferty is embarassingly and destructively miscast as Peter Lalor - I know he had just appeared in The Overlanders but surely they must have guessed the part was beyond his capabilities. Apparently there was a push to cast Peter Finch (who plays a more peace loving leader of the miners pushed aside for Lalor) in the lead - one wonders what would have happened if this had occured, with Rafferty shunted to a "best friend" role (i.e. like the one Gordon Jackson plays). There would have definitely been more fire in Lalor's speeches and at least some chemistry in the romance subplot (with bland Jane Barrett being cast).
Yet there are pleasures - it looks spectacular, with some great production design (tents, miners, troopers over the hills), and plenty of extras. I know this cost a bomb, and much of the money was wasted, but a lot of its up on screen. The action sequences are very good too, such as the burning down of the hotel and the final attack on the Stockade. These provide solid "end of acts one and two". It's quite historically accurate (maybe even at the expense of the drama) and fair.
I wonder even with Peter Finch in the lead if audiences would have gone for the movie though. The story mightn't resonate as well as filmmakers think (I have an untested theory Australian audiences aren't that interested in revolution). The 1980s Eureka Stockade mini series didn't rate that well, Peter Lalor is a firebrand. I know why they always make Lalor the hero - he was the leader, he lost an arm, he found a girl... but maybe he would work better as a supporting character, with the hero being a fictitious person who was more emotionally engaging (or something).
Anyway I'm getting off topic. And maybe being over critical. For the point is, the film was surprisingly watchable, with plenty of action and movement and historical interest. No masterpiece, but a long way from being the dog its often accused of being.
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