1987 Australian horror adventure film by Arch Nicholson
Dark Age is a 1987 Australian horror adventure film[2] directed by Arch Nicholson, produced by Antony I. Ginnane and starring John Jarratt.[3]
Plot
During a massive rainstorm, a trio of poachers head out into a local river in the Northern Territory to hunt crocodiles. Upon finding a massive saltwater crocodile, the poachers attempt to capture it. However, the crocodile tips their boat over and attacks, leaving only one survivor - John Besser (Max Phipps).
The next day, ranger and herpetologist Steve Harris (John Jarratt), Oondabund (Burnum Burnum), the leader of a local Aboriginal community, and his second-in-command Adjaral (David Gulpilil) head out to check on the poachers and rescue Besser. Besser however vows revenge against the crocodile.
The crocodile subsequently attacks and murders an Aboriginal child. Harris is assigned by his boss Rex Garret (Ray Meagher) to kill the crocodile. However, Oondabund refuses to allow this, revealing to Harris that the crocodile - named Namunwari - is believed to be a mystical repository of the community's souls.
Namunwari subsequently kills a thug at a local harbor. Harris leads a search for it, only to turn up nothing. Harris convinces Oondabund to help him hunt Namunwari, in exchange for capturing the crocodile and releasing it downriver away from people in its original home. A reluctant Garret agrees.
Harris, Oondabund, and Adjaral set out hunting Namunwari along the river. Besser and one of his friends also set out to hunt Namunwari by trapping it in a net, intending to kill it. However, Namunwari is able to drag Besser into the water and bites off his arm.
Harris, Oondabund, and Adjaral are able to successfully capture Namunwari and bring it in to the mainland. The trio set to transporting Namunwari via truck, unknowingly pursued by Besser and his friends and Harris's girlfriend Cathy Pope (Nikki Coghill) who intends to warn the trio. They manage to arrive at the crocodile's home, only for Besser and company to arrive immediately after.
Besser attacks the crocodile with an axe as it flees into the river, while his friends engage Harris, Oondabund, Pope, and Adjaral in a gunfight. Oondabund is fatally wounded by one of Besser's men, but the others are able to fend them off. Besser loses track of Nanunwari in the river and is ambushed by the crocodile and dragged underwater to his death. Sometime later, Adjaral feeds Oondabund's remains to the crocodile in accordance with their religion.
Production
The film was part of a two-picture deal between executive producer Antony I. Ginnane and Hollywood studio RKO which also included The Lighthorsemen. Shooting took place five weeks in Cairns and one week in Alice Springs, starting 22 April 1986.[4]
The plot shares many similarities to Jaws and contains homage shots such as the shot involving a shooting star.
Release
The movie was never seen in Australia theatrically and took a long time to be seen on DVD.[4]
Reception
Dennis Schwartz of Ozus' World Movie Reviews gave a positive review, calling the film "well-produced and acted, and an intelligent environmental adventure film results."[citation needed]
Quentin Tarantino spoke enthusiastically of the film in the documentary Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation!, commenting "You could re-release Dark Age in 2,000 screenings and people would go see it." In 2009, Tarantino hosted a screening for it in Sydney.[5]
Filmink later said "The phenomenal box office success of Jaws meant producers inevitably looked towards Australia’s deadly fauna as a source of inspiration... In hindsight, it’s actually weird that more films about killer animals weren’t made in the 10BA era."[6]
