Australian movies: 1976

An interesting year in movies with some genuinely great movies mixed with some absolutely crazy stuff too.

1976

Break of Day

Romantic drama about about a World War I returned soldier (Andrew McFarlane) who comes across a woman (Sara Kestleman) while hunting who lives by herself and falls for her despite being married himself. But he finds that they are two different people when he meets her artist friends from the city. Pretty typical of the genre.

A couple of nude scenes from British actress Sara Kestleman plus some brief nudity from afar from Geraldine Turner and Kate Ferguson after they pose for an artistic photo.

Sara Kestleman in Break of Day

24230kb 1min 14sec 744x576 (breasts)

23330kb 1min 11sec 744x576 (implied nudity/'nude' under covers)

4682kb 18sec 744x576 (possible breasts)

 

Geraldine Turner and Kate Ferguson in Break of Day

9034kb 27sec 744x576 (both briefly show full frontal nudity from a distant otherwise show implied nudity and plenty of cleavage in nice dresses)

 

Deathcheaters

After the success of The Man from Hong Kong, Brian Trenchard-Smith decided to make a movie starring his stuntman friend Grant Page to show off his skills and he brings in John Hargreaves to play his buddy who runs a company that does stunts for productions. When they help stop a robbery they are asked to help the government with a terrorism problem at a power plant. The plot is inconsequential to showcasing Grant Page and it's pretty fun and doesn't pretend to be anything but a movie with cool stunts. Sadly, Grant Page just died in the last couple of days and was still doing stunts including for the upcoming Furiosa movie well into his 80s.

No nudity in the movie but I decided to upgrade the videos I made previously to HD.

You can find a synopsis and the original update for Deathcheaters here.

Margaret Gerard in Deathcheaters

87917kb 1min 40sec 1920x1038 (plenty of cleavage in leotard, lengthy)

25685kb 30sec 1920x1038 (in towel)

 

Margaret Gerard and Judith Woodroffe in Deathcheaters

50535kb 58sec 1920x1038 (Margaret in one piece bathing suit, Judith in bikini)

 

Judith Woodroffe in Deathcheaters

3592kb 4sec 1920x1038 (plenty of cleavage in gown, possible upskirt)

4756kb 6sec 1920x1038 (nippy)

 

Annie Semler in Deathcheaters

25151kb 29sec 1920x1038 (plenty of cleavage in midriff revealing top)

 

Do I Have to Kill My Child?

Hour-long telemovie starring Jacki Weaver as a mother who's new baby is driving her to despair to the point that she feels she could be a danger to the baby. Pretty depressing stuff and feels like a docu-drama. No nudity in the telemovie but there's a see-through nightie scene from Jacki who wears her hair differently in this, so much so that she kind of looks like Sydney Sweeney in some scenes. Very odd...

Jacki Weaver in Do I Have to Kill My Child?

12605kb 38sec 768x576 (in towel)

18762kb 59sec 768x576 (plenty of cleavage in see-through nightie to breasts and panties)

Don's Party

Excellent adaptation of a David Williamson play about a bunch of Labor Party supporters who gather for a party on the election night of 1969 when it was believed that Labor would be swept into power for the first time in 20 years. Except, they don't and everyone at the party gets drunker, hornier and angrier as the night goes on. A great cast and everyone seems to be having a ball being absolutely the worst. There's been rumours of this movie been remade over the years but this is very much a movie of its time and being remade now would mean it would be buggered up by modern sensibilities, which it definitely doesn't need.

Plenty of nudity in this movie, particularly from Clare Binney but also some brief nudity from Veronica Lang and a couple of scenes featuring Candy Raymond.

You can find a synopsis and the collages and videos from Don's Party here. A preview is below.

Clare Binney in Don's Party

   
   
   
   

 

Veronica Lang in Don's Party

   

 

Candy Raymond in Don's Party

   

 

Eliza Fraser

A bawdy retelling of the story of English immigrant Eliza Fraser (Susannah York) who with the rakish captain of the boat (John Waters) become shipwrecked on an island and they live with the Indigenous people while the captain tries to fuck Eliza. Remarkably unsubtle comedy from the director of Alvin Purple that clearly wouldn't be made now (see pics below for why) plus there's been a major shift in the story of Eliza Fraser which makes the story a lot less 'fun'.

British actress Susannah York has a few nude scenes in the movie. Plus the Hexagon crew managed to get Abigail to do another (brief) nude scene for them.

You can find a synopsis and the collages and videos from Eliza Fraser here. A preview is below.

Susannah York in Eliza Fraser

   
   
   

 

Abigail in Eliza Fraser

 

Fantasm

Sexy portmanteau movie made in America because there were major issues getting a cast for what was proposed. Plays as a comedy but the movie is overwhelmed by sex scenes which limits the amount of comedy that occurs plus some stuff like the segment about 'wanting to be raped' isn't exactly made for comedy. Most of the time it's boring and if it wanted to be a funny movie it should've had less sex.

A shitload of nudity from a number of American actors including porn stars, some of them fairly well known.

You can find a synopsis and HD videos from Fantasm here. A preview is below.

Ronnie Scholes in Fantasm

   
   

 

Dee Dee Levitt in Fantasm

   
   

 

Maria Arnold, Wendy Cavanaugh and Helen O'Connell in Fantasm

   
   
   
   
   

 

Gretchen Rudolph in Fantasm

 

Rene Bond in Fantasm

   
   

 

Maria Welton in Fantasm

   
   
   
   
 

 

Uschi Digard and Mara Lutra in Fantasm

   
   
   

 

Candy Samples in Fantasm

   
   

 

Shayne in Fantasm

   
   
   

 

Roxanne Brewer in Fantasm

   
   

 

Serena in Fantasm

   
   
   

 

 

Mad Dog Morgan

Utterly crazy but never not interesting biopic about bushranger Mad Dog Morgan (Dennis Hopper at possibly the craziest time of his life) who led local police on a merry dance as he plied his trade. Coupled with director Phillipe Mora (Howling 2, The Marsupials: The Howling 3), who may be every bit as nuts, they come up with a truly bizarre movie that meanders all over the place, is very violent and ends with Frank Thring asking to having Morgan's scrotum cut off to make into a tobacco pouch. It's unrelenting insanity.

Some brief nudity from Liza Lee-Atkinson as a bar owner who prostrates herself for Mad Dog Morgan but he's not interested.

You can find a synopsis and HD videos from Mad Dog Morgan here. A preview is below.

Liza Lee-Atkinson in Mad Dog Morgan

   

 

 

McManus M.P.B

Telemovie, probably a pilot, about a detective (Peter Sumner) in the Missing Persons Bureau who plays by his own rules helped along by a female detective (Arna-Maria Winchester). Together they go looking for a character played by Pamela Stephenson. Pretty basic stuff and as I said, plays like a pilot.

No real nudity in the movie but there's a few side-boob scenes in this PG rated movie, one each from Arna-Maria Winchester, Pamela Stephenson and surprisingly Deborah Kennedy in her first ever role. Usually she plays staid women or busy-bodies so her playing a sexy model was quite a surprise. That fight between Pamela Stephenson and another woman got a bit friskier than expected too.

Arna-Maria Winchester in McManus M.P.B

6548kb 22sec 696x532 (brief side-boob, in towel)

24401kb 1min 28sec 696x532 (plenty of cleavage in open midriff revealing top with possible hint of breast, shorts)

37367kb 2min 21sec 696x532 ('nude' under covers with brief side-boob, lengthy)

 

Pamela Stephenson in McManus M.P.B

6544kb 22sec 696x532 (brief side-boob, plenty of cleavage in nightie)

17500kb 1min 02sec 696x532 (plenty of cleavage in nightie that lifts up to reveal panties, scrag fight)

 

Deborah Kennedy in McManus M.P.B

12548kb 45sec 696x532 (arm covering breasts/side-boob)

 

 

Oz

Re-imagining of the Wizard of Oz story with teenage girl Dorothy (Joy Dunstan) who is groupie with a travelling band which ends up having an accident and she ends up joining a surfer, a mechanic and a biker as she attempts to find her way to see the Wizard in concert. The drugs were weird and plentiful in the 70s that's for sure.

Some brief nudity from Joy Dunstan as an evil truckie attempts to rape her.

You can find a synopsis and the collages and videos from Oz here. A preview is below.

Joy Dunstan in Oz

   

 

 

Puzzle

ABC telemovie that's dated 1976 but apparently didn't air until late 1978. American actor James Franciscus (Beneath the Planet of the Apes) is imported to play a treasure hunter looking for an urn with the remains of Buddha only to get into a plot involving rival treasure hunters (including Sir Robert Helpmann) plus Nazis (of course!) and their gold. Surprised this was made by the ABC as it's really silly stuff. Might explain why it sat on the shelf for 2 years.

No nudity but Wendy Hughes changes into a bikini top for the finale of the movie.

Wendy Hughes in Puzzle

67726kb 4min 06sec 696x536 (bikini top, split skirt, extremely lengthy)

 

 

Queensland

Fifty minute drama about two down and out men who attempt to make up their mind about moving from Melbourne to Queensland with the promise of a job and better weather but something keeps holding them back.

Alison Bird shows her breasts in bed after sex in one scene.

You can find a synopsis and HD videos from Queensland here. A preview is below.

Alison Bird in Queensland

   

 

 

Summer of Secrets

The Rocky Horror Picture Show director Jim Sharman came back to Australia with Nell Campbell to make this bizarre drama that's strangely not a thriller about a young couple who decide to holiday in an abandoned house on an apparently deserted island only to find that it is inhabited by a mad doctor who's attempting to reanimate the love of his life with the help of his offsider. The mad doctor and his offsider capture the young couple and the doctor becomes obsessed with the new woman (Nell Campbell) who he wants to control, particularly after his attempt to reanimate his old love doesn't go to plan. Sharman is a strange director who possibly could've had the world at his feet thanks to Rocky Horror but went on to make a selection of very odd movies and plays.

There's a couple of nude scenes featuring Nell Campbell in the movie with the first one being very brief.

You can find a synopsis and the collages and VHS quality videos from Summer of Secrets here. A preview is below.

Nell Campbell in Summer of Secrets

  
  

 

 

Surrender in Paradise

A rare Queensland made movie (for the time), a low budget independent production about a bunch of bushrangers in the early 1900s who go on-the-run on horseback from the police and strangely find themselves transported to the 1970s after they reach the main road. The police continue to follow them by car until they reach Surfers Paradise where they have a massive shoot-out on the beach and surrounding apartment buildings which is a surprisingly well done scene. But for the most part it's a pretty modest movie with obvious budgetary restraints and a plot which doesn't really go anywhere until the final showdown.

There's one nude scene featuring Carolyn Howard as the wife of one of the bushrangers who is washing herself in the river as the police approach and we see her breasts.

Carolyn Howard in Surrender in Paradise

14574kb 54sec 632x478 (breasts)

 

Gaye Poole in Surrender in Paradise

11123kb 53sec 632x478 (bikini)

 

There's further movies from 1976 that are without anything to cap including the kids movies Barney, Barnaby and Me and Let the Balloon Go, the decent dramas Caddie and The Devil's Playground, the Hitchcockian thriller End Play, dramas The Fourth Wish and The Singer and the Dancer plus the excellent family movie Storm Boy. A couple of telelmovies Mama's Gone A-hunting and McCloud: Night of the Shark are also without anything to cap. I haven't been able to track down copies John Duigan's second movie The Trespassers or Out of It although according to Ozmovies it doesn't have any nudity in it.

Also there's Paul Cox's debut feature Illuminations which has a fair bit of nudity in it from Gabriella Trsek but I also haven't been able to find a copy of it. I have previously done an extensive review of Paul Cox's movies between 1979-2015 which can be found in 4 parts: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

I've decided to not cap the American movie Goodbye, Norma Jean about Marilyn Monroe that has plenty of nudity in it mainly because it's Australian connection is very tenuous plus the movie was made entirely in the US whereas Fantasm, which was also made in the US at least has Australian filmmakers and some segments shot in Australia.

Looks like there's plenty of nudity in the movies of 1977 plus the first New Zealand movie will feature.

 

Tags: Sara Kestleman, Geraldine Turner, Kate Ferguson, Margaret Gerard, Judith Woodroffe, Annie Semler, Jacki Weaver, Wendy Hughes, Arna-Maria Winchester, Pamela Stephenson, Deborah Kennedy, Carolyn Howard, Gaye Poole