H231: Australian Cinema
Assignment Two: Film Criticism Essay – Blood Oath
CAST
Captain Cooper Bryan Brown
Vice Admiral Baron Takahashi George Takai
Major Beckett Terry O'Quinn
Major Roberts John Bach
Lieutenant Tanaka Toshi Shioya
Sheedy John Clarke
Sister Litell Deborah Unger
Private Jimmy Fenton John Polsen
Lieutenant Corbett Russell Crowe
Sergeant Keenan Nicholas Eadie
Private Talbert Jason Donovan
Captain Ikeuchi Tetsu Watamabe
Mr. Matsugae Sokyu Fujita
President of the Bench Ray Barrett
CREDITS
Director Stephen Wallace
Producers Charles Waterstreet
Denis Whitburn
Brian A. Williams
Co-Producer Annie Bleakley
Executive Producers Graham Burke
Greg Coote
John Tarnoff
Screenplay Denis Whitburn
Brian A. Williams
Director of Photography Russell Boyd ACS
Production Designer Bernard Hides
Original Music David McHugh
Production & Distribution The Australian Film Commission
The Australian Film Finance Corporation
Village Roadshow
RELEASE DATES
Premiered in Australia: 26th July 1990
Premiered in Tokyo, Japan: 5th April 1991
BOX OFFICE
According to figures on the Australian Film Commissions Website, Blood Oath made a gross of $AU 633 000 in Australian box offices. Little else was able to be found on international figures.
Blood Oath had a budget of $AU 7 million.
INTERVIEWS
Although there was little available on the web or in printed literature of interviews with cast and crew, there is an excellent site on the film with an in-depth synopsis by screenwriter Brian Williams on the circumstances of making the film, the reception of the film both in Australia and Japan and working with cast and crew. It is available here:
http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Cinema/1501/indexpots.html
Included on the DVD version of the film is an interview with Ray Martin with Russell Crowe and Bryan Brown about the film. This was taped on Ray Martin Live soon after Russell won his Oscar for Best Actor in Gladiator. Also included on the DVD is a video clip of the song Memorial Day, recorded by Russell's band, 30 Odd Foot of Grunts.
WEB AND LITERATURE PRESENCE
Not very much worthwhile information available in Journals, although the film is mentioned in a number of books on an Australian film, although this is always quite brief. Tom O'Regan's book Australian National Cinema offers the most interesting information and critical analysis of the film, but even this is limited. Again, not much about the film on the web. Most websites looked briefly at the DVD version of the film, and the extra features of it, but very little in the way of reviews and critical analysis. The best site found was the one mentioned above. It goes to show that unless and Australian film does exceptionally well overseas, there is little information about it, especially when it is over ten years old.
REVIEWS
Reviews of the film and its transition to DVD can be found on these websites:
http://www.darkhorizons.com/dvds/d-blood.htm
http://www.australiandvd.net/
http://www.urbancinefile.com.au/home/view.asp?a=6022&s=Features
AWARDS
John Polsen (Private Jimmy Fenton) and Toshi Shioya (Lieutenant Tanaka) were both nominated for best supporting actor at the 1990 AFI awards.
FACTS
Blood Oath was Russell Crowe's first feature film.
Blood Oath is also known as Prisoners of the Sun.
It was filmed on location in Queensland, Australia. Some exterior shots however, show the island of Ambon.
Ray Barrett plays Russell Crowe's father in Heavens Burning.
In November 1998, a Tokyo court rejected a demand for compensation by soldiers and civilians from Australia, New Zealand, Britain and the United States who were held prisoner by Japanese troops during World War Two.
The film is not to be confused with the book by the same name, written by John Vornholt.