2 Michael Blakemore Films: Country Life / A Personal History of the Australian Surf DVD

COUNTRY LIFE: Aging Australian rancher Uncle Jack (John Hargreaves) and his faithful niece, Sally (Kerry Fox), have their quiet lives disrupted by the sudden reappearance of Alexander (Michael Blakemore), Sally's father and Jack's former brother-in-law, who left the ranch to become a London theatre critic some decades before. The self-important Alexander is married to the gorgeous Deborah (Greta Scacchi), whose charms soon enrapture both Uncle Jack and local doctor Max (Sam Neill), for whom Sally pines.

THE PERSONAL HISTORY OF THE AUSTRALIAN SURF: In 1950, Michael Blakemore left Australia for London and a career in the theatre. A Personal History of the Australian Surf describes his life up to that point. It is probably the story of innumerable boys who grew up along the coast of Australia under the spell of the Pacific Ocean. The film tells of what he had to leave behind when the RMS Otranto steamed under the bridge and out of Sydney Harbour. And it also suggests perhaps why, in those days, it was necessary to go.