The Devil’s Playground **** (1976, Arthur Dignam, Nick Tate, Simon Burke, Charles McCallum, John Frawley) – Classic Movie Review 9306

Writer-director Fred Schepisi’s impressive 1976 feature début The Devil’s Playground is an autobiographical account of his repressed schooldays in a 50s Catholic seminary preparing boys for the priesthood.

The film examines the clash between the hellfire certainties of the priest-teachers and the rapidly growing sexual awareness of the boys.

The Devil’s Playground is a highly personal story, like a first novel, written and directed with feeling. Arthur Dignam and Nick Tate are excellent as Brothers Francine and Victor, and Simon Burke is outstanding as the main boy, Tom Allen, struggling with life in the seminary as physical desire battles religious discipline.

It won six 1976 Australian Film Institute awards, including Best Film, Best Direction, Best Actor in a Lead Role (Nick Tate and Simon Burke tied), Best Screenplay – Original or Adapted (Fred Schepisi) and Best Achievement in Cinematography (Ian Baker).

Thomas Keneally, the author of Schindler’s List and The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith, appears as hellfire preacher Father Marshall, in the first of his three film appearances as an actor.

Also in the cast are Charles McCallum, John Frawley Jonathan Hardy, Gerry Duggan, Peter Cox, John Diedrich, Sheila Florance, Alan Cinis, Richard Morgan, Rowan Currie, Gary Pixton, Michael David, Warren Coleman, Marc Gough, Andrew Court and Brett Murphy.

The Devil’s Playground is directed by Fred Schepisi, runs 107 minutes, is made by The Film House and The Australian Film Commission, is released by The Film House (1976) (Australia), Columbia-Warner Distributors (1977) (UK) and EMC (1979) (US), is written by Fred Schepisi, is shot in Eastmancolor by Ian Baker, is produced by Fred Schepisi, is scored by Bruce Smeaton and is designed by Trevor Ling.

Simon Burke is the Federal President of Actors Equity Australia.

© Derek Winnert 2019 Classic Movie Review 9306

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