THE NIGHT THE PROWLER

Australia. 1978. 90 minutes. Colour.
Ruth Cracknell, John Frawley, Kerry Walker, John Derum, Maggie Kirkpatrick, Terry Camilleri.
Directed by Jim Sharman.

Excellence in one art form does not guarantee excellence or expertise in another. So Patrick White's first screenplay is not great but, of course, interesting. He delves into Sydney Centennial Park suburban oddity giving a sketchy family history from the 40s to the 60s.

However, he works in caricatures and impressions. This makes for telling points but it also makes for simplification which can be too simplistic (and have more impact on page, or even stage). White is clever and smart in observing the ridiculous but does not have a great deal to say, moving from the banal to the ambitious scope of a critique of many aspects of dead Australian life.

1. The status and work of Patrick White? His themes, focus and tone? The quality of his vision? A man of literary background moving to drama, to cinema? How successfully? The collaboration of Jim Sharman as director with Patrick White's vision?

2. The technical bravura of the film – significant for the themes, showy? The world of Centennial Park, the glimpses of Canberra? The suburbs, the park at night? The ordinariness of interiors and exteriors – and their sinister extraordinariness? The moving from reality to fantasy and back again? The film's attention to detail and close-up? Editing?

3. How well did the structure of the film work: the intrusion and Felicity's seeming rape? The impact on her, her parents? Reality and fantasy? The focus on Felicity and the rape experience changing and stirring her? Reality and lies moving to unreality? The placement of the flashbacks and the survey of an Australian couple in suburbia from the 40s to the 60s? Changing styles? The comment on the Australian heritage? The culmination in Felicity becoming the prowler by night? The finale with the old man – and the hope? For the future?

4. The ambiguities of the title? Felicity and her reaction to the prowler, her story to the doctor, her parents and the police? The irony of the later visualising it and the lack of truth? The prowler as a small, almost impotent? Felicity and her domination of him? The conventions of the rapist at night as prowler – the parents' reactions, the police and the doctor? The mother and her reaction to the prowler – even to fantasizing? Dad and his ignoring of it? The prowler as reason for breaking an engagement? The ironies of the role reversal as Felicity becomes the prowler, taking his place – more successfully? The place of her prowling, the gallery of people she met in the park, the robbery and violation of the house? The final encounter of compassion?

5. The title and its direct relation to Felicity and what happened? Her reaction to the prowler – and the imagination of the prowler? Her rebellion – bringing into the open what was latent? The park as a place for prowlers? The nightmare aspect of night and prowling?

6. The delineation of Felicity as a character – her size, age, passive? The Australian slob? A woman in her place, suppressed? The film's playing on this theme? With any sympathy? Felicity and her relationship to her parents – as seen by the experience of the rape? Her mother's gossiping and imagining and collapse? Her father's ignoring it? Her fiance and his Public Service background, career and prospects? Felicity at work, her reaction to the neighbours talking about the weather, people with dogs? The rape as stirring her and transforming her? Letting out the shadow side of her personality? How bad was this – or not? The range of people she met in the park – the Greeks and their singing, the flasher, the old woman drinking and her talking about being treated by the nuns, the nude man? Her activities in housebreaking, the robbery, the putting of the jam on the portrait? The return of the society couple (and the irony of the thin portrait with the fat woman) and the critique of society and Felicity's hatred of it? The contrast with the old, dying man, his nakedness, excretion, philosophy of life? Her compassionate response to this – the police, getting him buried? What had stirred in Felicity by the end?

7. The significance of the old man and his philosophy of life – profundity, banal? Sufficient for Felicity to build something positive on? Her sense of responsibility? The importance of excretion as the last activity and the traditional significance of this? The contrast with Felicity's care?

8. Felicity as a product of Australia, suburbia? The cumulative effect of the flashbacks: the 40s and her mother with the husband at the war, Felicity's birth, the pram walks? After the war and her father's return, his taking care of his little girl? His awkwardness with her during her adolescence? A greedy fat girl eating, stabbing the cake at the artificial birthday party? Her father and his retirement, her mother and the obtrusiveness, organisation? The satiric humour of her mother's different dresses, hair styles, glasses, topics of chatter with Madge?

9. The portrait of Mrs Bannister – how cruel, how realistic? Showing her in reaction to the rape, Centennial Park's style and class? Her reaction to her daughter, modesty etc.? The phone and the mirror and her continual chatter to Madge and hurried endings of conversations? Her fantasies about the rape and the significance of this and the influence on her daughter? Her reaction in the flashbacks to the styles of the time e.g. glasses, hairstyles, dresses? Madge? Her expectations of Felicity's fiance? The portrait of an empty Australian woman and her pretensions? The rape shattering her dreams and her decline into drinking and not caring for herself? Purposelessness?

10. The contrast with Mr Bannister and his ineffectual nature, his reaction to the rape and to the doctor's visit, the police? Treating Felicity as his little girl? The absent Australian father forfeiting his responsibilities? His mowing the lawn and pruning the plants? His lack of communication with his daughter?

11. The fiance and his prospects, a decent young man, his talk with Felicity and their ride in the car, his inability to understand what had changed in her? Their visual incompatibility, their talking together? His decency in response to her? Her gratitude towards him? The irony of the glimpse of her seeing her future in Canberra – and its impossibility?

12. The doctor and his visit, the neighbours – the sketching in of ordinary suburban types?

13. The police and the media image of them? The cliches of the police melodrama? The discussion about raising ferns etc.? The behaviour in the household, the interrogation of Felicity?

14. The house that Felicity broke into and the couple, the details of their way of life from wealth and jewels to sex aids? The party and Felicity's being ill at ease in it? The close-up and the grotesque eating? Patrick White's vision of suburbia – how profound, how satirical? Any redeeming features?

15. The contrast with the people in the park – the Greeks and their singing, the long talk by the alcoholic woman, the nude young man that Felicity encountered? Any hope in these people or are they merely images?

16. Patrick White's insight into suburbia and its emptiness? His judgment – how harsh, how real? His standards and values for society, his expectations? How much judgment on surface, how much depth? The ugly wasteland – by presenting it satirically, is this sufficient judgment in itself? Any hope for redemption?