Storm Boy **** (1976, Greg Rowe, Peter Cummins, David Gulpilil) – Classic Movie Review 11,345

Storm Boy (1976): ‘His free spirit roams with his pet pelican, Mr Percival, and his secret Aboriginal friend, Fingerbone Bill.’

Director Henri Safran’s Australian 1976 children’s film Storm Boy tells the sweet and simple story of an orphaned pelican, an Aborigine loner and a lonely 10-year-old boy.

It is based on Colin Thiele’s book and filmed to splendid effect on the isolated South Australian coast.

Greg Rowe is engaging as the boy, Mike Kingley, whose reclusive widowed dad Tom (Peter Cummins) lives in a beach hut, and fishes to scrape a living. The kid meets an Aborigine, called Fingerbone (David Gulpilil), who names him Storm Boy, forming a bond.

Storm Boy is a neatly handled children’s film with adult appeal.

Also in the cast are Judy Dick, Tony Allison, Michael Moody, Graham Dow, and Paul Smith.

Storm Boy is directed by  Henri Safran, runs 88 minutes, is made by The South Australian Film Corporation, is released by Roadshow Films (1976) (Australia) and Guild, is written by Sonia Borg, is shot by Geoff Burton, is produced by Matt Carroll, and is scored by Michael Carlos.

It was first shown on UK TV on BBC 2 in 1977.

It is remade as Storm Boy (2019), with Finn Little, Jai Courtney and Geoffrey Rush.

© Derek Winnert 2021 Classic Movie Review 11,345

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