Blackrock (film)

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Blackrock
Directed by	Steven Vidler
Written by	Nick Enright
Starring	Laurence Breuls Linda Cropper
Release date(s)	1997
Running time	90 / 100 min.
Country	Australia
Language	English
IMDb profile

Blackrock is a 1997 Australian movie directed by Steven Vidler and written by Nick Enright. Internationally it was best remembered as the debut film for actor Heath Ledger.

1 Origin
2 Synopsis
3 Controversies
4 External links

[edit] Origin

Blackrock had its origin in 1992 as A Property of the Clan, a theatre-in-education piece written by Australian playwright Nick Enright (1950-2003). It was 'inspired' by the real-life rape and murder of schoolgirl Leigh Leigh in Stockton near Newcastle, Australia on November 3, 1989. Enright subsequently developed it into another play, Blackrock (1995), directed by David Berthold for Sydney Theatre Company, as well as a movie, also called Blackrock (1997). The movie was premiered at Sundance Film Festival in the USA before being released across Australia in 1997.

[edit] Synopsis

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Blackrock was set in a fictional Australian beachside working-class suburb called Blackrock, where surfing was popular among youths like Jared. He had his first serious girlfriend, Rachel, who came from a much wealthier part of the city. One day Ricko, the local surfing legend (played by Simon Lyndon), came back after an eleven-month odessey, and Jared gave him a 'welcome home' party at the local surf club. Unsupervised and with alcohol freely available, tragedy soon arrived - Jared witnessed a girl called Tracy being raped by four youths, including Toby (Rachel's brother, played by Heath Ledger), and did nothing to stop the attacks. In the days that follow, Jared learns that Tracy was beaten to death by Jared's friend Ricko.

The incident - and the community - would soon be scrutinized by news bulletins across the nation. The locals reacted differently: The surfers continued their lives as if nothing had happened; Tracy's grieving best friend Cherie resorted to violent behaviours; Rachel had to face the news that her brother Toby was one of the accused. Jared was torn between the need to reveal what he saw for the sake of justice, and the desire to protect Ricko, Toby and the other rapists in the name of 'mateship'. His silence eventually led to the breakdown of his relationships, not only with Rachel, but also with his mother Diane, who was recently diagnoses with breast cancer...

[edit] Controversies

Blackrock had attracted considerable controversies when it was screened in 1997, partly because of its fictionalization of a real-life rape and murder without the consent of the victim's family. Many locals from the town where the actual murder occurred were also hostile to the film, believing it to have portrayed the community in a slanderous way. Nevertheless, Blackrock did make an important statement about the Australian 'coastie' culture, particularly regarding the uglier side of masculinity.