The Squatter's Son

The Squatter's Son is an Australian film completed in 1911 and directed by E. I. Cole. It was based on a play which Cole and his company had performed throughout Australia. The Squatter's Son was filmed at locations "in the vicinity of Melbourne".[3] It is considered a lost film.

The Squatter's Son
Directed byE. I. Cole
Based onplay by E. I. Cole
StarringE. I. Cole's Bohemian Dramatic Company
Production
company
Pathé Frères[1]
Release date
13 April 1911[2]
CountryAustralia
LanguagesSilent
English intertitles

Plot

John Lenton is a squatter who lives at Wilunga. The villainous Dudley Ward also works there. Ward is masquerading at Lenton's nephew, who was murdered overseas by Ward.

Lenton's father refuses to give his son permission to marry Violet Gartson, the woodchipper's daughter. Joe Garston is given £200 by old Lenton to take Violet away from the station. Jack is disinherited by his father for refusing to give up Violet.

Dudley Ward murders Jack's father with Jack's knife. Jack arrested for his father's murder but charge "not proven." Joe Garston, who knows Dudley Ward is the murderer, scorns his offer to marry Violet.

Joe drugged and dragged away to the scrub. Violet finds a letter proving Dudley Ward to be the murderer. Ward's bushranging gang carry Violet off to the Gap. Little Cecil Lenton's birthday. Dudley Ward, who in case of Cecil's death becomes the heir, tries to murder the little chap. Exciting rescue. Jack Lenton falls into the hands of the bushrangers. The denouement; virtue rewarded and vice punished.[4][5]

Original Play

In 1910 the play was described as "the most famous" of Cole's "repertoire of pieces".[6] It was often revived throughout Cole's career.[7]

The film was told in 25 scenes with the main characters being two cousins.[8]

Reception

The Geelong Advertiser said of the film "the drama is most sensation and exciting and well portrayed. It had a decidedly Australian flavor, embracing as it does every phase of bush life, from the squatter to the sundowner and the blackfellow. In addition to the sensationalism the fun was fast and furious and kept the large and appreciative audience in a continued state of laughter."[2]

According to the Perth Sunday Times the film's (unnamed) star "is a magnificent type of the Australian bushman. During the action of the photographic drama, the chief artist rides, shoots, fights and swims and hews trees, he being a handsome, muscular athlete who was specially selected for his splendid qualities. He is, or was, a tip-top amateur actor, but is now being rushed with engagements by Eastern managers."[9]

References
  1. "Advertising". The Referee. Sydney: National Library of Australia. 5 April 1911. p. 16. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  2. "BOHEMIAN DRAMATIC CO". Geelong Advertiser. National Library of Australia. 15 April 1911. p. 4. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  3. Bijou Theatre, The Argus (Melbourne), 25 April 1911, page 3.
  4. "BOHEMIAN DRAMATIC COMPANY." The Barrier Miner (Broken Hill, NSW) 31 December 1915: 6]. Retrieved 28 December 2011
  5. ""The Squatter's Son."". The Cairns Post. Qld.: National Library of Australia. 24 November 1911. p. 2. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  6. "The Riverine Herald". Riverine Herald. Echuca, Vic.: National Library of Australia. 12 October 1910. p. 2. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  7. "THE TRAVELLING THEATRICAL SHOW". The Examiner. Launceston, Tas.: National Library of Australia. 5 December 1939. p. 4 Edition: LATE NEWS EDITION and DAILY. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
  8. Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production, Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998, 17.
  9. "THE BUSKER". The Sunday Times. Perth: National Library of Australia. 28 May 1911. p. 21. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
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