Avengers of the Reef
Avengers of the Reef is a 1973 Australian children's film directed by Chris McCullugh and starring Simon Drake.
Avengers of the Reef | |
---|---|
Directed by | Chris McCullugh |
Written by | Anne Brooksbank |
Produced by | Noel Ferrier |
Starring | Simon Drake |
Cinematography | Peter James |
Edited by | Tim Wellburn |
Music by | John Sangster |
Production company | Timon Productions |
Distributed by | Roadshow |
Release date | 21 October 1973 |
Running time | 84 mins |
Country | Australia |
Language | English |
Budget | A$100,000[1] |
Box office | A$27,000 (Australia)[2] |
Plot
Scientist Bill Stewart goes to Fiji with his son Tim to investigate the appearance of the crown-of-thorns starfish in the reefs off the island. It transpires that a mining syndicate set up by Updike is deliberately seeding the reefs with the starfish to enable them to mine the reef area. Updike hires an assassin, Kemp, to kill Stewart. He fails, but Tim thinks he has succeeded and runs away to an island village pursued by Kemp. Tim makes friends with a Fijian boy, Sai, and is eventually reunited with his father.
Cast
- Simon Drake as Tim Stewart
- Biu Rarawa as Sai
- Tim Elliot as Kemp
- Noel Ferrier as Updike
- Garry McDonald as Updike's Aide
- Dibs Mather as Bill Stewart
- Lesie as Chieftain
- Judy Morris as Airline Hostess
- Jenny Lee
- Richard Lupino
- Bob Lee
- Eddie Osborne
Production
The film was jointly financed by the actor-producer Noel Ferrier and the Australian Film Development Corporation. Shooting began in Fiji in September 1972, mainly on the island of Taveuni. Filming was delayed by several weeks because of a major cyclone.[1]
Awards
Anne Brooksbank won an Australian Writers Guild Award for her screenplay.[1]
References
- Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production, Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998 p273
- "Australian Films At the Australian Box office" (PDF). Film Victoria. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 February 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2012.