In anticipation of our upcoming Australia’s Kimberley: A Voyage to the Outback expedition, our staff members compiled a list of their favorite movies revolving around this remote, otherworldly region of Northwestern Australia. So grab some popcorn, put your feet up, and binge-watch these Outback-themed flicks:
Shine
Geoffrey Rush stars in this biographical film about Australian pianist David Helfgott, a child prodigy who overcomes years of mental illness and returns to the music he loves. Rating: 4 Rock Wallabies.
Backroads
Two Australians—one white, one black—steal a car and pick up other misfits on the road while musing about aboriginal life in modern-day Australia. Rating: 3 Rugged Gorges
The Sapphires
The incredible true story of four Aboriginal singers who overcome racism to find fame as a girl group entertaining the troops in 1968 Vietnam. Rating: 3.5 Flying Foxes
Rabbit Proof Fence
Another true story of young Aboriginal girls, these forcibly taken and turned into domestic servants during the 1930s, only to escape and make a daring 1,500-mile journey back home. Rating: 3.5 Bungle Bungles
Bran Nue Dae
The film adaptation of Australia’s first Aboriginal stage musical, this coming-of-age story tells of an indigenous teenager who rebels against his Catholic schooling and finds his way home. Rating: 3 Boab Trees
Crocodile Dundee
Australia’s highest-grossing film encouraged viewers to “put another shrimp on the barbie!” as they followed the exploits of its machete-wielding, reptile-wrestling hero. Rating: 3 Saltwater Crocs
Jandamarra’s War
This docudrama introduced the world to Jandamarra, the legendary Bunuba warrior who led an 1894 rebellion against Europeans colonists. Rating: 3.5 Aboriginal Cave Paintings
Kenny
This mockumentary follows its namesake Australian plumber on his thankless job of maintaining portal toilets at major events. Rating: 3 Tidal Mud Flats
Samson and Delilah
Two Aboriginal teenagers endure poverty, substance abuse, and oppression as they try to make new lives for themselves in Alice Springs. Rating: 4 Cascading Waterfalls
The Tracker
After an Aboriginal is accused of murdering a white woman in 1922, three Europeans—led by an indigenous “tracker”—set out across the Outback seeking justice, but at what cost? Rating: 3.5 Fiddler Crabs
