Tracks is an adaptation of Robyn Davidson’s book of the same name, in which she recounts walking from Alice Springs to the west coast with four camels and her dog in 1977. The film begins two years before her journey, with Davidson (Mia Wasikowska) working on camel farms to save money for her trip and to learn how to wrangle the animals. She finally receives sponsorship for her journey from National Geographic, on the condition that she meets photographer, Rick Smolan (Adam Driver), at several points along the route. In the desert she is tested by the full ferocity of the central Australian climate, and the trials she faces—sandstorms, disorientation, death—leave her doubting herself and her mission. But she finds hope in the small indigenous communities and hermit camps she passes through, and in the edler, Eddie (Roly Mintuma), who guides her across the sacred lands of his people.
The story is based as much on Smolan’s photographs as Davidson’s book, and the film has the feel of a photo essay, each frame telling its own story. The contrast between vast, sweeping shots of the outback and intimate portraits of Davidson and her companions nods towards the style of National Geographic, where Davidson’s story was originally published.
Wasikowska gives what is perhaps her best performance yet, to show Davidson not only as a woman of strength, but also one who has suffered great pain and is strong out of necessity. Driver is perfect as the goofy photographer with the heart of gold, and balances Warsikowska’s intensity, but with a subtle strength of his own that prevents Smolan becoming just another screwball sidekick.
In many ways Davidson is the kind of hero Australia loves to embrace: she’s an underdog facing a seemingly impossible challenge. Her dreams are big, but she remains level-headed and shows the outback the respect it deserves. It would have been easy for director John Curran to romanticise Davidson’s story. Instead, Tracks acknowledges the greatness of Davidson’s feat, but seeks a deeper understanding of why a woman would prefer the company of animals to people and why she would chose to leave city life behind and set out to conquer one of the loneliest places on earth. The result is a film that is personal without being sentimental, and a worthy retelling of a great Australian story.
