Wake in Fright

In this classic, broiling Australian thriller, an exasperated schoolteacher finds himself stranded in the dusty outback town of Bundanyabba, where the growing isolation and unhinged locals begin to eat away at his sanity.

Schoolteacher John Grant (Gary Bond) is journeying to visit his girlfriend in Sydney when a series of unfortunate events leave him stranded in ‘the Yabba’, a sinister town filled with a myriad of eccentric characters. Featuring a chilling yet charismatic performance from Donald Pleasence, Ted Kotcheff’s film, once thought “lost”, is now considered a crowning achievement of the Australian New Wave.

Simmering with tension and a heat that feels as though it is emanating from the screen itself, Kotcheff’s violent indictment of the divisions in Australian society is a disturbing, destructive film imbued with an anger and intensity rarely seen since. Visceral in its depiction of outback life, Wake in Fright is not easily forgotten. Please note this film contains strong scenes of kangaroo hunting and slaughter. More context is provided by the following Producers' Note: "The hunting scenes depicted in this film were taken during an actual kangaroo hunt by professional licensed hunters. For this reason and because the survival of the Australian kangaroo is seriously threatened, these scenes were shown uncut after consultation with the leading animal welfare organisations in Australia and the United Kingdom."