MYSTERY ISLAND
Australia, 1980, 70 minutes, Colour.
Bill Charlton, Jason Duncan, Miklas Juhlin, Michael McGlinchey?, Ray Marshall, Melissa Woodhams, Ray Meagher, Alan Penney, Tom Richards.
Directed by Gene W. Scott.
Mystery Island is an Australian children's film, akin to the telemovie style. It is modest in scope and budget. Based on a story by Cliff Green, it portrays four children around the age of 10-12 on the Barrier Reef. The usual adventure ingredients are there, a touch of the castaway island stories of last century but linked with a modern criminal atmosphere. However, the touch is generally very gentle and the only gun used has blanks. The screenplay could be much stronger and the overall result is a certain flatness in the presentation. However, for
70 minutes younger children would probably identify with the characters and quite enjoy the film.
1. For what audience was the film made? What age group? The response of boys, girls? Australian children? Overseas?
2. Production values, small budget? The children and their acting? The adults professionals? The success of creating characters quickly, atmosphere, adventure?
3. How well used was the Barrier Reef location photography? The islands? The underwater photography and the beauty of marine life?
4. The realism of the plot, the touches of 19th. century adventures and traditional attitudes? The reference to comics and the phantoms?
5. How well did the film establish the children, how quickly? Their characters, interaction? Indications of how they would act during the adventure? The children's father? Royston and Tommo? The goodies and the baddies?
6. The establishing of the four children as characters? The two living on the island, the two visitors, the family connection, clash potential? The visitors and their diving, the job of painting? The hiring of the dinghy, the swimming, the rescue? The drifting? The children exercising their skills, making plans, acting as children, eating, sleeping, hiding themselves in the lighthouse? Their keeping watch, their being afraid?
7. Their discovery of Duffy, of Royston and Tommo? Their strategies, plans, executing the plans? Mark and his taking the money and escaping? The dangers? Coping?
8. The characterisation of Jock and Sandy? Their relationship, skills, knowledge of the islands? Their leading Roger and Mark? Roger presented as a know-all and his blending in during the troubles? Mark and the comics, fears, being afraid, his escape, injury, encounter with Old Duffy?
9. The sketching in of the adult characters - the children's father and his concern, the police and their tracking down the criminals and finding Duffy? Tommo and Royston and their plans - giving the dinghy to the children, the meeting up with the boat, the getting of the money, the fear of the Coast Guard, sleeping on the island, chasing the children, trying plans to get the money back, the final confrontation? Duffy and his presence on the island, watching the children, rescuing Mark, helping the children, firing the blanks against Tommo?
10. The resolution of the adventures - the dangers, the firing of the blanks, Jock and his tackling Tommo? The basic adventure material, young children identifying with the characters and the situations - fantasy and realism, perennial values of good and bad, heroism?
