Nicolas Roeg's mystical masterpiece chronicles the physical, spiritual and emotional journey of a sister and brother abandoned in the harsh Australian outback. Under the pretence of having a picnic, a geologist (John Meillon, Crocodile Dundee) takes his teenage daughter (Jenny Agutter, The Avengers) and 6-year-old son (Lucien John, We Need To Talk About Kevin) into the Australian outback and attempts to shoot them. When he fails, he turns the gun on himself and the two city-bred children must contend with harsh wilderness alone. They are saved by a chance encounter with an Aboriginal boy (David Gulpilil, Storm Boy) who helps them survive, and in the process underscores the disharmony between nature and modern life.
Critic Reviews:
- " A towering work, painted from a palette of feelings and instincts words cannot do justice to." – Leigh Paatsch (Herald Sun, Australia)
- " Beautifully done, I think, with a completely appropriate and consistent style. " – Patrick Gibbs (Daily Telegraph, UK)
- " What makes the film triumph over this literalness is another kind of intensity which one feels, since it's a filmmaker's, is all Roeg's. " – Gavin Millar (Sight and Sound)