GOODBYE PARADISE
Australia, 1983, 119 minutes, Colour.
Ray Barrett, Robyn Nevin, Carole Skinner, Lex Marinos, Frank Gallacher, Kate Fitzpatrick, Kris Mc Quade.
Directed by Carl Schultz.
Goodbye Paradise is an Australian film that should be more widely seen. It is an interesting play on the private eye, corrupt police thriller, very popular in the United States with such authors as Elmore Leonard, Carl Hiassen. It is the kind of hardboiled story written with skill and wit. An American equivalent would be Ross McDonald? and the film, Harper, with Paul Newman.
The film was written by Bob Ellis and Denny Lawrence who collaborated also on Ellis’s film Warm Nights on a Slow Moving Train. Bob Ellis always saw himself as an enfant terrible of journalism as well as of film and television writing. His autobiographical film was The Nostradamus Kid. However, he also contributed to quite a number of Australian films, especially the classic, Newsfront. Denny Lawrence also had a strong career in screenwriting, directing a number of films including the comedy Emoh Ruo.
The film is set on the Queensland Gold Coast and focuses on a disgraced former Queensland assistant police commissioner. History was to catch up with Goodbye Paradise when the Fitzgerald inquiry into police corruption in Australia was instituted in the 1980s which had all kinds of repercussions on the police as well as on the government led by Premier Joh Bjelke- Petersen.
The plot is complex with a senator’s daughter disappearing, an art work disappearing, connections with military activity during the communist insurgency in Malaya as well as the staging of a military coup.
The film is a star vehicle for Ray Barrett who had spent a lot of time in England in the 60s and 70s on television and in supporting roles in films. He returned to Australia and featured prominently in many films of the 80s and 90s. He won the best actor award at the AFI Awards for his role here. He is well supported by a strong cast led by Robyn Nevin.
The film is interesting, especially in hindsight, about government and police in various Australian states during that period. It is also entertaining in its portrayal of characters as well as the ironic with that Ellis and Lawrence bring to the screenplay.
1. An entertaining Australian film, Awards for screenplay and Ray Barrett's performance? Serious undertones for the satire? The blend of the serious and the humorous via private eye thriller techniques and satire? Impact on Australian audiences? (Queensland audiences?) Overseas?
2. The reliance on the tradition of the private eye thrillers: the seedy central character, his squalid room, drinking, age, work, women, money, danger, types he comes in contact with, the blend of tough and tender, sentiment? Stacy as this kind of private eye character? Influence of American private eyes? The American private eye films? The importance of the voice-over technique: description, satirical comment, evaluation of persons and situations?
3. The transplanting of these conventions to Australia? Surfers Paradise and its scenic background, the Tambourine Mountains, the main centre of Surfers Paradise? Gaudy holiday resort? The echoes of California? Interiors, exteriors? The background of the plot and irony - American style, Australian style? The flavour of the tranplant? The importance of the editing e.g. Stacy's blackouts, the growing revelation of what was happening, ironies, special effects? The musical score and its atmosphere?
4. The title and the irony of the farewell? Goodbye as a theme of Raymond Chandler etc.? The focus on Paradise, Surfers Paradise? Biblical overtones: Paradise and Heaven, Paradise and sin? The visual jokes about Eve, women? Eden and the commune - and the jokey snake in the garden? Goodbye and nostalgia? Australia no longer an Eden - and farewell to innocence?
5. The quality of the screenplay: the use of private eye conventions, the reliance on dialogue, verbal humour, visual humour, bathos and deadpan humour, stereotypes, sentiment and irony? Australian irony? The quality of Bob Ellis' background and wit? Denny Lawrence and the younger generation satire?
6. The importance of Ray Barrett's presence and performance? His fitting the role? His awards? Presence, appearance? Interest and sympathy? The audience watching the events through his eyes? His police background, his age, drinking, writing his memoirs - with the threat of expose? The drinking end to his career? Sleazy life? His nights in the town? His contacts? People's reaction to him and his past office? His mission, search, care and danger? The search for Kathy giving some purpose to his life? The police background, law and order, his Catholic background and the remarks about guilt, purgatory? Relationship with the Army and his World War Two background? Kathy’s commenting on his being a closet socialist? His dreams and Australian dreams souring? A literary man and the literary tone of his style? The revelation of his character through his search for Kathy: skill at his career, possibilities? Relationship with Kate, friendship, contacts, consolation, grief at her death? The prostitutes? Brandy and his care for her and the horror of her death? Kathy and her love for him? Ted and the various officials, senators? The police - Curly and his attacks on him and wanting omissions from the book? His landlady and their sparring? His drinking and his ups and downs, blackouts and health, writing and exposes, his manuscript being edited, burnt? His bond with his dog? A man of concern? His response to death? The invitation to join the coup? The confrontation with Quiney on the beach? His rejection of Todd and Quiney? Driving the bus to the military site? The comic running?
7. The point of view of the film: the police and police corruption, politics and Labor politicians becoming respectable, double dealing? The Queensland situation and the satire on it. The Gold Goast seceding from Queensland? The irony of Ted's speech about Surfers Paradise and Gold Coast taxes going to dole bludgers and farmers? Stacy's principles - closet socialist critique of the Establishment, Human values: help? Stacy's view on politics and power, relationships, sexuality, manipulation?
8. The possibility of a military coup in Australia? Political and financial situations,' money dealings, ambition? The place of the Army - and the elitist attitudes? Was the coup made plausible? In plan? In execution? In the battle thwarting it?
9. Kate and her strong presence through Robyn Nevin? The background of her marriages, playing the piano, songs, duet of Bye Bye Blackbird with Stacy, listening to him, information about Brandy, helping him, giving shelter to Kathy, the grief at her death - and its importance for the film and the flashbacks? The effect on Stacy?
10. The politicians and the contacts, business deals? The Senator and his mission for Stacy? Reasons? His taking Stacy off the case? His death - suspicious circumstances? His glamorous wife his second wife? Symbol of his change from Labor politician to important person in society? Home, parties? The wife and her fashions, friendship with the bodyguard, grief at her husband's funeral, speech on television and the support of the coup? The chief aide and his continued presence, fixing up situations and covering up?
11. Kathy and the story of her dropping out, her reasons? Stacy's search for her? The friendships, the men in her life, their deaths? Information she received? Her work as a prostitute? The comparison with Brandy (and Janet Scrivener's performance as each girl)? Stacy rescuing Brandy after the assassination and the explosions at the celebration? Taking her to the hotel? The pathos of her death? Tracking Kathy through the religious sect? The commune - and the religious talk and idealism of nature and the commune? Talking to her in Eden? Her returning with him? Return home and talk of her father? Kathy and her love for her father, grief at the funeral?
12. Quiny and his old friendship with Stacy, memories of the war, his establishing himself in Malaya, the military connection? Asia and the military connection - and the old fears of the invasions into Queensland from Asia? The chess games by radio? The proposal to Stacy? The bizarre scene on the beach with the chess game? Checkmate? His smooth double-talk and his plan to kill Stacy - with Kate as the victim? His being destroyed in the coup? Todd and his friendship with Quiny and Stacy? His presence at the commune? His mouthing religion and Shakespeare? The plea to Stacy? The pursuit during the battle and the violence of his death - with the blood in the waterfall and the satiric touch? The manoeuvres? The Asian soldiers? The final battle?
13. Ted and his speech at the rally for the separation of Gold Coast State? (With its speeches, jingoism, materialism, glamour, the bizarre pineapple and banana and surfboard spectacle for the Gold Coast - shattered by the assassination attempt?) His final appearing at the end and being in control? The irony of the prostitute with whom Stacy had the liaison turning out to be part of the corps? Igor as the beach boy type and his presence at the battle? The irony of Curly - and his threats, surveillance and bashing of Stacy - and then his being on-side all the time?
14. Lex Marinos as the Midnight Cowboy of the Gold Coast? The migrant, his language, gaudy style? Sex? The bus tours for the blue-rinse ladies? Being bashed? Stacy taking his bus -and his taking the old ladies on foot for their final tour?
15. The doctor and his sinister presence, responsible for Brandy's death, his treatment of Stacy - and his being killed?
16. The gallery of credible and interesting supporting characters: Stacy's landlady and her fussiness and his ribbing her? The young man from the dolphin aquarium and his liaison with Kathy, his part in the plot, assassination attempt, death? The art dealer? The piano-player at the club? The tourists? The personnel at the cult centre and their American religious style? Their leader and his tough attitudes? The hotel manager where Stacy took Brandy?
17. The action sequences: tough private eye fights, snipings, fights and bashings, deaths?
18. The war action - and the satire on the Armed Services commercials with Tchaikovsky's 1812? The sending up of war?
19. The film's reliance on humour - Australian style: visual, verbal?
20. An Australian entertainment, humour, irony, critique of the U.S. while using its models? The ageing mock-hero? The relevance of the themes satirised?
