Mabo
PG, 103mins
Directed by Rachel Perkins
Aboriginal history holds a vital position amongst the Australian film landscape. Movies that deal with the first Australians and their modern day descendants are frequently amongst the strongest that this country produces, and their makers are some of the absolute finest this land has to offer. One just has to think of Warwick Thornton’s Samson & Delilah, Ivan Sen’s Beneath Clouds, Rachel Perkins’ Radiance, or many others to see that these stories are special and their storytellers are gifted individuals. ABC’s telemovie, Mabo, is no difference, but while it never reaches the cinematic heights of its big screen cousins, this wonderfully acted and superbly designed television feature is a strong piece of work from its makers. It’s fitting timing, too, on the 20-year anniversary that this fine film should come into our homes.
Rachel Perkins (also the director of Bran Nue Day and One Night The Moon) has reteamed with her frequent star, Deborah Mailman (Offspring), as well as Jimi Bani (The Straits) to bring the life of Indigenous rights crusader Koiki “Eddie” Mabo. If the name is familiar then you were probably paying attention to the news throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, as Mabo became the name synonymous with a court case brought against the government in order to get land entitlements bequeathed by ancestry recognised by federal law. It’s a juicy story and Perkins doesn’t retrofit it with histrionics and flash. Mabo is a film that’s very respectful to its subject, and yet never entirely shies away from showing the good and the bad of this imposing historic figure.
What makes Mabo a special film, however, is the cast. While Perkins does a fine job at steering the action from one union meeting to another, one courtroom to another, and one sparky kitchen fight between husband and wife to another, it is the actors who do most of the heavy lifting. As Mabo himself, Bani is a wonderful mix of strength and cheeky humour. The real life Mabo’s determination to make a difference surely proved an intoxicating inspiration for Bani and he comes through with flying colours. Mailman – truly one of the great Australian actors at this stage, and only getting better – is best in show as Mabo’s wife. Equally determined to run a household free of the troubles that plague so many others of her race as she is determined to see her husband’s mission through to the end, Mailman excels. There’s little she can’t do and hits all the right notes as her character passes through naïveté, romance, strength, disappointment and joy. Also impressive, albeit in smaller roles, are Miranda Otto, Ewen Leslie, Colin Friels, Tom Budge, and Leon Ford (the actor who also directed last year’s fabulous Griff the Invisible).
Special mention must also go to the make-up and costume departments of Mabo. The distinctively daggy imagery of Australia in the 1970s and ‘80s is wonderfully portrayed here thanks to Margot Wilson’s spot on costuming. With the colourful prints of the Torres Strait sequences folding seamlessly into the hopelessly beige and brown colour scheme of the big city court sequences, Wilson has achieved a perfect balance and one that never feels anything less that historically accurate. Similarly the hair and wig work of Gail Kane, Anita Morgan and Jacqueline Priem is simply superb. As these actors are meant to age, their hair steadily becoming grey and less in control, they never look embarrassing or amateurish, which is something even Hollywood film aging sometimes can’t master (see Clint Eastwood’s J Edgar – or, better yet, don’t). Elsewhere, the period haircuts look particularly spot on from what I know of the era, and Ewen Leslie’s moustache is a work of art.
Television feels like the right place for Perkins’ Mabo to be. It would have to be quite different to really work on the big screen as its unadventurous structure calls for a more casual viewing setting. Nevertheless, it’s a nicely made, expertly crafted, and wonderfully acted film that should give viewers a strong emotional hit. Whether you know the story or not – especially not – then Mabo makes for fine Sunday night viewing and it will surely be hard for viewers to keep a dry eye during the final minutes of this man’s extraordinary story.
Mabo screens 10 June, ABC1, at 8.30pm (Blackfella Films)
