The Everlasting Secret Family is a 1988 Australian film directed by Michael Thornhill about a secret society of gay men. It is based on Frank Moorhouse's so-named collection of four short stories published in 1980.
| The Everlasting Secret Family | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Michael Thornhill |
| Written by | Frank Moorhouse |
| Based on | stories by Frank Moorhouse |
| Produced by | Michael Thornhill executive: Antony I. Ginnane |
| Starring | Arthur Dignam Mark Lee Heather Mitchell Dennis Miller John Meillon Paul Goddard Anna Volska |
| Cinematography | Julian Penney[1] |
| Edited by | Pam Barnetta[1] |
| Music by | Tony Bremner[2] |
Production companies | |
Release date |
|
Running time | 94 mins |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $2.5 million[3] |
| Box office | $280,000 (Australia)[3] |
The movie was financed by Antony I. Ginnane's IFM company.[4]
IFM pre-sold the movie to Hemdale Film Corporation for $1.5 million but Hemdale was later unable to meet its pre-sale obligations.[3][5]
Plot
editA fictional group of middle-aged homosexual men, including a senator, exercise quasi-masonic influence and power over teenage schoolboys from the fictional Saint Michael's Private School for Boys.[6] The film follows one of these boys (called only 'Youth'), as he rises through the ranks of the secret society.[7]
Cast
edit- Mark Lee as Youth
- John Meillon as Judge
- Drew Norman as Oil Boy
- Dennis Miller as Eric, the Chauffeur
- Arthur Dignam as Senator
- Alan Carey as Doctor at Oval
- Ken Keen as Headmaster
- Marcus Cornelius as Teacher at Oval
- Heather Mitchell as Wife
- Michael Winchester as School Teacher
- Louis Nowra as Shop Assistant
- Dominic Barry as Bell Captain
- Paul Davies as Waiter #1
- Allan Penney as Gardener
- Victor Ramon as Maitre d' #1
- Michael Kozuki as Mr. Akutangana
- Anna Volska as Wife's Friend
- Paul Goddard as Son
- John Clayton as Mayor
Reviews
editJanet Maslin of The New York Times in 1989 thought that the film was divided "into two halves, the first engrossing and the second ridiculous... The action becomes farfetched, the actors hopelessly unconvincing, and everyone ages so badly—thanks to too much eyebrow pencil and talcum powder—that the film winds up looking like a high-school play".[1]
RS reviewing for Time Out stated that "All the gay characters are 'elderly pervert' stereotypes, cruel, calculating and vampirish. Yet, for a film that takes so rigidly homophobic a stance, an awful lot of time is spent dwelling on youthful tanned muscles and taut buttocks".[8]
References
edit- ^ a b c Maslin, Janet (1989). "Reviews/Film; An Australian Tale of Sex And the Power It Confers". The New York Times. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
- ^ "The Everlasting Secret Family (1987)". bfi.org.uk. Archived from the original on 17 June 2017. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
- ^ a b c HEMDALE HOLDS OUT ON PRE-SALE PAYMENTS TO IFM By MARK LAWSON Australian Financial Review 29 March 1988 p 34
- ^ David Stratton, The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry, Pan MacMillan, 1990 p163
- ^ GOLDFARB RENEGES ON PRE-SALE DEBT By MARK LAWSON Australian Financial Review 28 April 1988 p 36
- ^ Michael Ferguson and Michael S. Ferguson Idol Worship: A Shameless Celebration of Male Beauty in the Movies, p. 215, at Google Books
- ^ Neal Drinnan (editor) The Rough Guide to Gay & Lesbian Australia, p. 310, at Google Books
- ^ "The Everlasting Secret Family Film". timeout.com. Retrieved 12 August 2018.