SMILEY GETS A GUN

Australia, 1958, 90 minutes, Colour.
Sybil Thorndike, Chips Rafferty, Keith Calvert, Bruce Archer, Margaret Christensen, Reg Lye.
Directed by Anthony Kimmins.

Smiley Gets A Gun was a sequel to the very popular Smiley of 1956. As with the original, the film is a British production written, produced and directed by Anthony Kimmins. The former film had Ralph Richardson; this film stars Sybil Thorndike. Once again Chips Rafferty leads the Australian cast. As with the original, the film takes advantage of Australian landscapes and country life with colour Cinemascope photography. The film can be parallelled with such films as Blue Fin, Storm Boy and Let The Balloon Go, of the '70s.

1. How good a family film, its suitability for family audiences, for younger children? Why?

2. The focus of the title on Smiley, his ambitions for the gun, the role of the gun?

3. The importance of wide screen, colour, music, Australian bush locations and the authentic atmosphere? How authentic a picture of the '50s, its impact now?

4. How well drawn was the character of Smiley, the young Australian boy, his, strengths of character, his mischievous nature, his role in the family, relationship to his mother and father and their influence on him, his dealing with people, his place in the town, friendship with the police? Relationship with Granny Mc Kinlay? The fact that he could be suspected? Young boy heroism at the end? An attractive character?

5. The sturdy reliability of Chips Rafferty as Flaxman? Law and order in the town, friendship with Smiley, the gun? His exercising his duty? A sympathetic policeman?

6. The character sketch of Smiley's parents, their work, difficulties? Their influence on Smiley?

7. The film's focus on Granny Mc Kinlay and her crusty character. how well presented was this? The importance of the gold, the robbery? The happy ending?

8. The dramatic suspense as regards the gold and the robbery, the situation being resolved, the revelation of the villain and audience expectations of him?

9. How well do films like this present the world of the child? How well do they represent traditional values. especially about right and wrong, good and bad?