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Reviews
Footrot Flats: The Dog's Tale (1986)
Wish this was better
As a Kiwi who grew up with this comic strip, I looked hard to find this film which few stores in my part of Australia seem to stock. However, I was disappointed in the results. The film tries to fit far too much in, and lacks a coherent plot. Where's the resolution of the dog drowning in the sheep dip? What about the 'breakup' between Wal and Cheeky? My kids watched the film and frankly were bored. It just goes to show that a great comic strip doesn't necessarily work as a film. I also thought the soundtrack was lame, especially when Wal (voiced by the always excellent John Clarke) suddenly breaks into song with the high-pitched tones of Dave Dobbyn - a voice that would have been much more suited to the dog. Let's face it, if this wasn't a Kiwi animation with nostalgic value for many of us, it would be a complete bomb
Sons and Daughters (1982)
Addictive but silly
In our house we nicknamed this "the trash" because it was such a transparently unrealistic soap, but we still videoed it every night. A lot of the characters appear in more recent stuff, especially Peter Phelps aka John who as in Stingers Undercover, Water Rats and Ned Kelly. Frankly the idea of John and Angela being twins was implausible to begin with - they didn't look the slightest bit alike. The show had some all time classic villains though - obviously Pat the rat but also Wayne. One thing that also sticks in my mind is that everyone in the Hamilton house appears to be raving alcoholics - there was hardly a scene where they weren't drinking whiskey. Wouldlike to see a rerun one day just for old times sake, but they don't seem to show it anymore.
The Message (1976)
As told by peripheral characters...
This is an excellent film, clearly meticulously adhering to the historical details. Unfortunately I think it is badly let down because of the omission of most of the absolute key people in the story of early Islam.
There's no Umar, no Abu Bakr, no Ali, none of the Prophet's wives, no Fatima. To explain to a Christian, that's like telling the story of Jesus while omitting Mary, Peter, Mary Magdelane, Andrew and arguably most of the other Apostles as well.
I understand as a Muslim why the Prophet himself should not be portrayed, but in my mind I don't think Islamic monotheism would be at risk if some of the more important companions had been portrayed. How was the decision reached that it was OK to portray Hamza and Zayd for instance, but not Umar? That's just odd.