Lady Marilyn and I watched the first of the six episodes of Faraway Downs on Hulu last night, and just enjoyed the heck out of it. This is Baz Luhrmann’s mega-director’s cut of the 2008 film Australia, and it’s quite a different beast. Faraway Downs has an almost fairytale quality to it — and Frontier Partisan readers know I don’t use that term as a pejorative. I love that Hugh Jackman’s character is treated so self-consciously as an archetype that he’s known simply as The Drover.
It’s deliberately episodic, and mixes tones almost recklessly — from broad, physical humor to magical realism to dark moments.
Variety:
“Because it’s a melodrama, it was already episodic,” (Luhrmann) says. “At the end of each episode, there is a tragedy, and there’s a real reason why you want to know what happens next. Because we were compressing for a single film in the cinema, there were really valuable sequences and scenes that we didn’t put in. But here, they aren’t just padding. They are different ways of telling the story.”
As Lady Marilyn said:
“It’s a good vibe.”
*
Len Babb and Craig Rullman during the filming of The Outside Circle.
Another tale of drovers…
Local Frontier Partisans are cordially invited to gather at Paulina Springs Books on Thursday, December 7, to celebrate the worldwide launch of Craig Rullman’s The Outside Circle: A Movie of the Modern West. The movie has been available for about a year through subscription Horse TV, but now it’s really out there — on DVD and streaming on Amazon Prime and Tubi.
We’re going to celebrate this accomplishment with story and song.
Craig will show clips from the film and talk about bringing the project from a wild idea to a finished documentary, utilizing talent from Sisters, including cinematographer Sam Pyke of Hill Shadow Pictures, and freelance journalist and videographer Cody Rheault.
Mike Biggers, Lilli Worona and I contributed original music to the film, and we’ll play songs from the film and other Western-themed music.
Rullman:
“We worked as hard making the thing as the people in it work to preserve something very special about our country. It’s gratifying to me that people are still able to respond to a narrative that isn’t driven by explosions, subterfuge and betrayal… I hope people come out and enjoy some great music, and maybe hear a story about a guy who knows nothing about making films who goes about trying to do it.”
Craig was recently on the Voices of the West podcast, which you can find on Spotify, or access here.
Matthew says
I saw the Outside Circle and it’s a beautiful film.
Been watching old episodes of Rawhide which I doubt is all that accurate of a story about cattle drives. Some episodes are real good and some aren’t. Love Clint Eastwood though.
Craig Rullman says
I love that picture of me and Len. Not least because Old Bugs the Horse was utterly thrilled to get unbridled at the end of a pretty long day chasing critters, yelling at cameramen, and following a bear track into the deeper bush. The tongue-out says it all. Thanks, Jim.
JimC says
It’s a good un.