Thar She Blows!
- February 1931 (1931-02)[1]
Thar She Blows! is a 1931 short Australian film, the first production from Cinesound Productions. It is a documentary on the West Australian whaling industry.
Synopsis
The action takes place at Point Close station, 500 miles north of Perth. A steamer sights a whale, plunges a harpoon into it, then draws the carcass to the ship's side, whereupon it is attacked by a school of sharks. The whale is towed ashore, where it is stripped of its blubber and prepared for market.[3]
Production
Ken G. Hall got hold of some spectacular footage shot by Walter Sully on board a Norwegian whaler off the coast of Western Australia, including scenes of a shark attacking a whale carcass. Hall wrote a commentary, had Lionel Lunn record it, and added a soundtrack to the film. Sound recording was primitive in Australia at the time and Hall could not add music or dub in an effects track.[4][5]
Release
The film was released in support of a Hollywood feature and received good reviews, particularly from Kenneth Slessor, then a critic for Smith's Weekly.[4]
The Sydney Morning Herald called it "an interesting film.[3] The Sydney Mail said it was "a promising example of local synchronisation."[6] The Brisbane Courier said "it is most entertaining from an educational viewpoint. The audience receives an insight into an industry, the value of which is not generally realised, in spite of the fact that it is carried on in Australian waters."[7]
The Adelaide New said that the film was:
Australia's answer to the eternal question, "Why can't we make pictures as good as America?" From a production point or view, the film is 100 per cent perfect... the shots easily eclipse anything of the kind attempted by cinematographers in other parts of the world... The whole production dealing with whaling and especially the scene where a school of sharks attacks a dead whale, could hold its own against any in the world.[8]
This success encouraged Cinesound to make another short, That's Cricket, before moving into feature production with On Our Selection (1932).[4]
References
- ^ "Advertising". The Sydney Morning Herald. 23 February 1931. p. 5. Retrieved 12 February 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "EMPIRE TALKIES". The Port Macquarie News and Hastings River Advocate. NSW. 29 August 1931. p. 4. Retrieved 12 February 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ a b "NEW FILMS". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2 March 1931. p. 5. Retrieved 12 February 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ a b c Ken G. Hall, Directed by Ken G. Hall, Lansdowne Press, 1977 p 55.
- ^ "Filming North Australia". The Sydney Mail. NSW. 1 April 1931. p. 10. Retrieved 12 February 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "At the Pictures". The Sydney Mail. NSW. 4 March 1931. p. 16. Retrieved 12 February 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "ENTERTAINMENTS TIVOLI THEATRE". The Brisbane Courier. 31 March 1931. p. 13. Retrieved 12 February 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ ""CITY OF SONG" STAR HAILED AS NEW CARUSO". The News (HOME ed.). Adelaide. 11 September 1931. p. 4. Retrieved 12 February 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
External links
- Thar She Blows! at National Film and Sound Archive
- v
- t
- e
- The Exploits of the Emden (1928)
- On Our Selection (1932)
- The Squatter's Daughter (1933)
- Cinesound Varieties (1934)
- The Silence of Dean Maitland (1934)
- Strike Me Lucky (1934)
- Grandad Rudd (1935)
- Thoroughbred (1936)
- Orphan of the Wilderness (1936)
- It Isn't Done (1937)
- Tall Timbers (1937)
- Lovers and Luggers (1937)
- The Broken Melody (1938)
- Let George Do It (1938)
- Dad and Dave Come to Town (1938)
- Gone to the Dogs (1939)
- Come Up Smiling (1939) (producer only)
- Mr. Chedworth Steps Out (1939)
- Dad Rudd, M.P. (1940)
- Smithy (1946)
- Thar She Blows! (1931)
- That's Cricket (1931)
- Ghosts of Port Arthur (1933)
- Road to Victory (1941)
- Anzacs in Overalls (1941)
- Australia Marches with Britain (1941)
- 100,000 Cobbers (1942)
- Another Threshold (1942)
- Eleventh Hour (1942)
- Give Us This Day (1943)
- South West Pacific (1943)
- Fourth Liberty Loans: I Had A Son (1943)
- First Victory Loan: Return Journey (1944)
- Searchlight on Japan (1948)
- Can John Braund Cure Cancer? (1948)
- Thrill of the Surf (1949)
- Fighting Blood (1951)
- Australian Bushland Symphony (1952)
- South Pacific Playground (1953)
- Overland Adventure (1954)
- Music in Our Schools (1954)
- Haven on the Hill (1956)
- The Kurnell Story (1957)
- From Palestine to Bengazi with the Prime Minister (1941)
- Kokoda Front Line! (1942)
- Moresby Under the Blitz (1942)
- Assault on Salamaua (1943)
- Men of Timor (1943)
- The Bismarck Convoy Smashed (1943)
- R.A.A.F. Eagles Over New Guinea (1943)