FRAN

Australia, 1985, 98 minutes, Colour.
Noni Hazelhurst, Annie Byron.
Directed by Glenda Hambley.

Fran is an excellent Australian documentary drama. A small-budget production, it was critically well-acclaimed, including nominations for Best Film, Best Director and Best Actress at the 1985 AFI Awards. It is a slice of life set in Western Australia. It uses authentic locations well, a great sense of realism for the audiences. Noni Hazlehurst is excellent as Fran, the single mother who loves her children but is unable to cope. It is interesting to compare this performance with her award-winning role in Monkey Grip – similarities and differences. She makes her characters come to life with extraordinary force. There is an excellent supporting cast, especially the child actors. The film was made with financial support from the Western Australian Department for Community Welfare. It is a film, perhaps not for the wide entertainment audience, but certainly for a wide audience to look at images of '80s Australian life, social problems – and reflect on these for solutions to the problems so well dramatised.

1. The impact of this social drama? Slice of life? The sponsorship of the Department for Community Welfare? A creative media contribution to reflecting social problems and offering means for their solution?

2. The use of Western Australian settings? Impact for Australian audiences? The universal significance of the characters and their situations? Suburbia and its detail, the feel of the locations, the homes, the streets, shops? The contribution of the musical score – both classical and contemporary?

3. The emotional impact of the film – as regards Fran, Marge, Jeff, the children? The importance of the emotional response and its complexity for audience understanding, reflection?

4. Noni Hazlehurst's skills as Fran: first impressions at the phone, her relationship with Marge, with her children? Her explanations of her background: education with the nuns, the institutions she had been in, her experience of foster parents? Her suspicions of authority and institutions? The hard effects on her? Her longing for relationships, her loneliness? Her children and their various fathers? A woman of strong affection and affective needs? Going out with men, the grasping for affection? Her defending herself? Her sharing her life with so many men, keeping the bed warm? Her capacity for anger yet her capacity for reconciliation? Responsibility and irresponsibility? Able to leave for days and weeks on end, palming her children off on her friends? Her outings – and the reaction of neighbours, calling her a slut? Living in temporary houses, caravans? Marge and her support, minding the children? Her using her friends? The affection for Marge – the make-up sequence, the supermarket, the stories to the Welfare Department? Ray and his history, the encounter, his returning home, bashing her, leaving? The effect on the children? Their having to cope, prepare meals, the eldest girl looking after the others? Relying on Marge? The people from Welfare and the possibilities for her future, her stubbornness and resenting bureaucracies? Her going out to the bar, palling up with Jeff, pushing herself on him, drinking, songs, the night with him, away for three days, the importance of the sexual relationship, company? Her hold over him? Bringing him home? His needing a way out? Her throwing herself at him, clutching to him, wanting her children to like Jeff and for him to like them? Her skill at cajoling people? Frantic at his leaving? Going to Carol and Graeme, the plan for the short holiday, staying away for weeks despite her protestations? The officer at the holiday camp, the race back to Perth, her anger and resentment at the children being in the institution, her visiting the lawyer, her shooting her mouth off? Her wanting to see her children, her not believing Lisa's story? Marge and her telling the truth? Jeff and the key? Her retreating and not coping? The dramatising of the single mother, her strengths and limitations, irresponsibilities, her plight? Audience sympathy for Fran? Critical attitudes towards her?

5. The portrait of the children: Lisa as attractive and clever, being able to manage, art, cooking, in tears, going to Marge? Her supporting her mother and loving her? Jeff and his attentions? The film's suggestion of his abuse – and then the revelation of the truth? Her telling the truth? Pleading with her mother? The final image – her future? To repeat the experiences of Fran? Or did she have greater strength and resources? Tommy as a boy, difficulties, love, resentment? Cynthia as young, little girl, love, her being hit and hurt, the experience of the institution, separated from the others, her mother? The film's sketching their characters? Dramatising their needs? Fran's failure towards them?

6. The importance of Marge as a friend? The story of her husband, children? Not being attractive – but a good woman? Her help, her human reactions, her anger, helping out, telling the truth to Fran?

7. Ray and his marrying Fran, his absences, his suspicions, return, abusive, leaving?

8. Jeff and his work, the drinks, the songs, going home with Fran, sexual liaison, moving in, sleeping in, the annoyance of the kids' Fran trying to make him like them, his treatment of Lisa – ominous and suggested by the screenplay rather than over-dramatised? His going away, the holiday with Fran, his denial of Lisa's story, the truth, his opting out?

9. Graeme and Carol, Fran's imposing on them, their immediate reaction, sense of duty, love, the truth?

10. The dramatising of the Welfare people – the pros and cons? Changes over the years, Fran's reaction, her going for help? Her inability to believe them?

11. The dramatising of human pain, social situations and traumas, generations repeating the errors of the past – their seeming to be no solution?

12. A fine exploration of relationships, responsibilities, marriage, children, love, maturity?