The Legend of Molly Johnson

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Cw W Fantastic, a must see. Leah Purcell has made and starred in a brilliant film Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/26/24 Full Review Adam M It's possible this is one of the best Australian films I have seen. Amazing story telling, acting, and filming. It often has dreamy moments of art house undertones, mixed with nostalgia of a time not known. A haunting reminder of how aboriginal people have been treated by colonisation, and also that everyone deserves a fair and just life, that shouldnt be robbed because of skin color. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 12/14/23 Full Review Jessica B Engaging and yet again Leah Purcell has outdone the character! Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 12/07/23 Full Review Wayne M The Legend of Molly Johnson is a strong and robust Australian film based on the classic Australian story The Drovers’s Wife by Henry Lawson. It has its flaws but is a very meritorious film nonetheless. Leah Purcell stars as Molly and she also wrote and directed the film. Purcell has updated and expanded the film to centre an Indigenous woman as the heart. Molly is left to fend for herself and her children in the Snowy Mountains in the late 19th century when her husband goes droving. She has much to cope with but is aided by passer-by Yadaka who is also wanted for murder. This film spares nothing in depicting the harshness of the times and it looks truly magnificent. It does have some plot holes but is also an exemplary Australian film. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 07/17/23 Full Review Ken R The Drovers Wife – The Legend of Molly Johnson (forget Henry Lawson you won't find him here) This recent Australian movie looked like it could be the one we were waiting for to put Aussie films back on the international quality trail. Striking cinematography by Mark Wareham in and around the Snowy Mountains offers mesmerizing vistas, all captured within high-grade camerawork. Excellent central performances including a stand out by young Malachi Dower-Roberts as Molly's young son. Multi-talented musician/composer Salliana Seven Campbell's score is interesting but often intrudes on proceedings, if it's not the tempo it's the sound mix. Leah Purcell works hard in the lead role of Molly Johnson, and her story is often important but she fails to keep the project on target as writer and director. Too many situations don't hold too close scrutiny with some bordering on being outlandish - seems many moviemakers are still trying to copycat Italian Westerns. It's also a pity some filmmakers feel the need to drive a wedge through any attempts at integration by pushing the political ‘them against us' narrative and doing so with evermore over-the-top violence and emotional manipulation. Here, she overloads her story with the grossest whites (like almost everyone) ultimately coming across as somewhat unbalanced. We will never move forward as a civilization while continually pushing past misgivings, a well-moderated film will involve both sides of the political situation without continually looking back to the past for fault and victim blaming. Leah has been given a rewarding career within this modern nation's industry but seems only to lean towards racial bias. While it's occasionally interesting, as several other reviewers have noted the end result is somewhat disappointing. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 05/14/23 Full Review Em J An awesome epic story. Leah Purcell is not afraid to go there and make it real. It told a story of white colonialism, of Australian history, that many may not want to hear, but should hear, that need to hear. A story of sacrifice, of doing wrong but for the right, inevitable reasons. And senseless, dominating, oppressive entitlement. That does the worst and justifies it blithely. Purcell needs to get her teeth into good stories and fine acting, and didn't disappoint. None of the cast do either. And the cinematography is sublime. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/22/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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