The Drover's Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson

Wow! What a story! Love the grit Molly Johnson shows, a hero's hero. Outside of the last two minutes, can't have a movie without the obligatory Woke PC hooey, this is an intense and fantastic movie.

The Drover's Wife is a classic short story by Australian writer Henry Lawson, first published in 1892 in The Bulletin magazine. Since then, various versions of the story (exploring different aspects) have been written by other writers, also widely adapted in different media from painting to stage and film. The original story is about a woman with four children living in a small hut in the Australian outback while her husband is away droving (herding livestock). One evening a snake crawls under the house; the woman, worried for the safety of her children, waits for the snake to come out. The snake ultimately emerges at dawn and is killed by the woman. The story highlights a mother's day-to-day struggle and her love and commitment to her children. In this version of "The Drover's Wife," directed by Leah Purcell (also playing the lead), the snake is metaphorical - misogyny (particularly domestic violence) and racism (against aborigines). Interesting idea, but it didn't work. The screenplay is weak, the characters are poorly developed, terrible editing and everything else is unremarkable except Leah Purcell's portrayal of the woman (Molly Johnson); she did a fine job.

The title is the only connection to Henry Lawson short story about a lonely woman living with her children in the highlands. The entire movie plot is completely new and has little other connection to any other cultural appropriation of the orignal tale. The story was written and directed by Leah Purcell who also acted in the lead role. Leah has obviously put her heart into the character, it shows! As Leah demonstrates much stronger in the skill of acting, than her other multitask roles. This story would have been much better as a six-part episode series to retain audience interest and allowing for more of the topics that Leah wanted to highlight, which could have been visited in more informatove detail. Music and graphic design was so outdated I thought I was watching an old-old Australian film from the 1990. The movie's only savour appeal (besides Leah's performance) is the professional artistic filming caturing of the highland landscape.

What would you do, an outback setting where there's few, not more than a brooding mare, only good for child care, have to take it on the chin, turn a cheek, you just can't win, no escape, there's no way out, just prepare for the next clout. Leah Purcell leaves us under no illusion, with an outstanding performance, as to the challenges faced by women in the lost and lonely landscapes of 19th century Australia where abuse, torment and oppression are commonplace, and where racism and prejudice prevail - I'd like to say we've come a long way since, but you can make your own mind up about that and the reasons for it, so if this film does nothing other than get you thinking, then it's 90 minutes well spent.

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.

Very slow at first half but starting to pick up afterward. It tells of harsh realities of racism and violence toward women who had no protecting. I'm a bit disappointed with most of the movie is quite slow. But still, it gives you the sense of reality in the hard life past.

I like good build ups, don't need action and prefer good dialogues over special effects. I love good stories. But I bearly could focus since this story is told way too slow for me. And the constant stream of music didn't help either. I won't say more because it was said in other reviews already. Reviews are always personal views though.

Much of the acclaim for The Drover's Wife, it turns out, seems suspiciously like virtue signalling. Yes, it's a lovingly crafted, passionately felt adaptation of Henry Lawson's tale. But it is also a very mixed bag of a film, and much less effective than it should have been. The film's chief virtues are some strong performances and striking cinematography. But the storytelling is repeatedly undermined by dialogue and sensibilities that are more 21st century than 19th century. The dialogue also occasionally gives way to poetic patches that, however much they evoke Lawson, further undermine the dramatic intent. Rather than trust the story, Purcell resorts to some extremely heavy-handed underlining of theme and message - moments in which the film plummets into something akin to second-rate political theatre from an amateur women's collective. A somewhat clumsy and largely ineffective score doesn't help either. Reservations aside, Purcell is clearly a good director, and, for all its flaws, The Drover's Wife is infinitely better than most first films. It's well worth your time; just don't expect the masterpiece some have been trumpeting.

The film is an Australian western that takes place in the 19th century. It deals mainly with the topic of spousal abuse, battered women. It seems the intent of the film is to raise awareness of domestic violence. The film also covers racism through a fugitive aboriginal running from the law. Unfortunately, I thought the film was too slow. This is my opinion, and you may not feel the same. Also, I wasn't impressed with the scenes between Molly Johnson and Yadaka. I just didn't feel chemistry between these two actors. I didn't like the editing in the scene with Molly and John MaPharlen. It was too choppy. It felt almost as though someone else beside the main editor did that scene. I also thought the ending, while meant to be dramatic, was undermined by the three women who appeared at Molly Johnson's execution wearing clothing with statements about domestic violence. I don't mean to sound unsympathetic to the thematics of the film, but I thought it was a distraction from what could have been a more powerful ending without it. The film for the most part is subtle with its theme, but then hits you over the head with the three women and their dresses which doesn't match the subtlety of the rest of the film. It just came off as political feminist theatrics in where the focus should have been Molly's final moments. The cinematography and stills time lapse photography was pretty nice. The soundtrack by Salliana Seven Campbell was also pretty good.

There's a reason a short story should stay a short story. Not every short can fill the canvas of a feature film. Henry Lawson would roll around in his grave. The fact that Leah Purcell even dreamt that this could be a film for a wide audience is beyond me. The film is disjointed and so slow you start to ask what is the film about? Is it about the treatment of women, some racism? Its trying to have many themes but it doesn't execute them well. You cant tell me that the screenplay was a page-turner, like you couldn't put the script down. Films can be slow if you have an interesting plot and dynamic characters. What a damn waste of a BIGGER budget than most aussie film. This was apparently 8 million dollars, what for? Great cinematography, great locations, music, costumes and production design, love the colour grading. The child actor was the best thing in the film. Leah's acting is good - not memorable. Rob Collins was a standout and mesmerizing but none of these things were good enough to hold my attention. A waste of a canvas that could have let the right director make an incredible Aussie western. Don't waste your time. Terrible directing by Leah Purcell. The ending was supposed to be emotional but because of the uninteresting boring journey, it just felt contrived and forced.