| The Man from Snowy River II | |
|---|---|
Australian DVD cover |
|
| Directed by | Geoff Burrowes |
| Produced by | Geoff Burrowes |
| Written by | Banjo Paterson (poem) Geoff Burrowes (story) John Dixon (screenplay) |
| Starring | Tom Burlinson Sigrid Thornton Brian Dennehy |
| Music by | Bruce Rowland |
| Cinematography | Keith Wagstaff |
| Editing by | Gary Woodyard |
| Studio | Silver Screen Partners III Burrowes Film Group Hoyts |
| Distributed by | Walt Disney Pictures |
| Release date(s) | 15 April 1988 |
| Running time | 110 minutes |
| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
The Man from Snowy River II is a 1988 Australian drama film, the sequel to The Man from Snowy River. It was released in the United States as Return to Snowy River, and in the United Kingdom as The Untamed.
Reprising their roles from the first film were Tom Burlinson (as "Jim Craig") and Sigrid Thornton (as "Jessica Harrison"), while Brian Dennehy appeared as "Harrison", instead of Kirk Douglas.
Contents |
Some years after his dangerous ride down the steep mountain to capture the Brumby herd and regain the Colt from old "Regret", Jim Craig (Tom Burlinson), now with a large herd of mountain-bred horses of his own, returns to his home vicinity to take up with his girl, Jessica Harrison (Sigrid Thornton). She is still smitten with him, but opposition from her father (Brian Dennehy) remains as resolute as ever. Further, she also has a rich would-be suitor endeavouring to court her, Alistair Patton (Nicholas Eadie), son of the banker from whom Harrison is seeking a large loan. Before he returns from Harrison's property to his home, Jim meets an army officer seeking quality horses for the remount service on a regular basis.
As the young Patton realizes Jessica's affections remain for Jim, and that she doesn't "give a damn" about him (Patton), he jealously and maliciously recruits a gang to steal Jim's horses. Jim gives chase and in so doing again rides his horse down the steep mountainside. Patton shoots at him; the horse is killed and Jim is injured but manages to recover and resume the pursuit. As Jim had earlier let the wild stallion which led the brumbies loose into the wild again, in a twist of fate, the stallion shows itself from the wild at this crucial moment, and Jim finally trains this horse that has been the enigma of the entire district for decades. As he breaks him in and learns to ride him, they become friends, and together, they catch up to Patton and his gang.
Jessica's father has also relented during this time, seen 'the light' and eventually joins with Jim and his 'rough-rider' friends to hunt down Patton and his gang. Jim Craig gets and wins his man-on-man duel with the chief 'villain', Allistair Patton, and Harrison gives his final approval for Jessica and Jim's alliance and the couple marry.
Bruce Rowland, who composed the music for this film, also composed the music for the first film.
This film has two alternative endings.
The Man from Snowy River II grossed $7,415,000 at the box office in Australia,[1] which is equivalent to $13,940,200 in 2009 dollars.