RETROSPECT: AN INDECENT OBSESSION (1985)
May 5th 2009 09:55
Johnathan Hyde is at his smarmy best as Neil in An Indecent Obsession.
By the early 1980s, Australian novelist Colleen McCullough was virtually a household name down under. With her reputation built upon bestsellers such as Tim and The Thorn Birds, film and television producers soon identified the author’s talent for saucy drama. Successful transfers to screen for both Tim and The Thorn Birds encouraged further adaptations of the novelist’s oeuvre, the next being the 1985 Hoyts/Michael Edgley International production of An Indecent Obsession. The story of passion and duty rendered against the backdrop of an isolated field hospital in the dying days World War II, the film’s producers were so pleased with the results that they eschewed its telemovie origins, instead releasing An Indecent Obsession straight into cinemas.
At an isolated World War II field hospital somewhere in the South Pacific, the final weeks of active service are heralded by an announcement of the unconditional Japanese surrender. Among the buildings of the hospital is Ward X, where the warm and compassionate Sister Honour Langtry (Wendy Hughes) cares for five psychiatrically wounded soldiers. It’s an almost co-dependent relationship, with the broken men relying on the nurse as their surrogate mother or sister, while Langtry herself, in the absence of real companionship, has become accustomed to the broken men’s neediness and affection. But the delicate sodality starts to unravel with the arrival of a dashing and seemingly untroubled new patient, Michael (Gary Sweet), in whom Sister Langtry begins to take more than just a professional interest.
Colleen McCullough knows how to create an effective drama and the basic constructs of An Indecent Obesession’s plot are exceptionally clever. The plot of an unexpected romantic tension upsetting a delicately balanced and close-knit community of already unhinged characters is one ripe for the dramatic picking. In his screenplay adaptation of the book, Denis Morgan managed to capture a large degree of the magic running through McCullough’s book, even if the final film is overly talky and sometimes sticks a little too close to some of the more outrageous melodrama of the original material.
Things aren’t helped initially by some overly ambitious cinematography and a rash of terribly wooden scenes – one in particular involving an incensed Langtry and her commanding officer, Colonel ‘Chinstrap’ (Bill Hunter), is so unintentionally hilarious it will have you blowing your ice-cream all over the lounge room floor. Once Michael arrives, however, the story clicks into gear and things start to move into a gentle rhythm that substantially increases in velocity during the second half of the film.
Performances are uneven, with the staginess of some of the delivery not benefiting the final cut. Hughes is up-and-down, with the talented actress at her best in the quieter moments, when she can use her considerable physical expression to drive Langtry’s development rather than Morgan’s square-peg dialogue. Likewise, the interpretations of the patients is a real mixed bag, with Mark Little seemingly lacking direction as the childlike Ben and Richard Moir overacting his socks off as the conniving Luce. Much better are Jonathan Hyde as the wheedling Neil and Bruno Lawrence as the thoughtful Matt, while ruling the roost is Gary Sweet as the egalitarian and physical Michael, a carefully modulated performance that would see the actor go on to higher honours.
In the final assessment, An Indecent Obsession is a strangely mixed bag, the propulsion of McCullough’s original story eventually eclipsing the weaknesses of a sometimes-clunky adaptation. Helping things immensely is the inspired decision to shoot the film in its entirety on the isolated Lord Howe Island, which gives the production a much-needed feeling of authenticity. While the film hasn’t aged terribly well and some of the performances fall over on even the most casual of inspections, the drama of the central story is hard to resist and ultimately makes for a compelling viewing experience.
An Indecent Obsession is part of the Literary Adaptations: Australia box set. For reviews of Picnic at Hanging Rock and The Naked Country taken from the same set, check out Cibbuano's excellent film review site, 20/20 Filmsight. The box set is available from Umbrella Entertainment.
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Comment by Damo
I hated hated hated every second that I watch of it.
The acting the story, the shock revelations that I saw coming from miles away.
I wish I could unsee this film or atleast have it errased from my memory.
Also the song at then was total crap.
Ah, I feel better now.
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
The basic set up of the story is what made it worth it for me, and I think i does get a lot better once the plot gets under way, even if many of its aspects are sub par.
For me, it's really a film that succeeds despite its best efforts to destroy itself.
And, you're right - the song at the end is absolutely hopeless.
Comment by MVD
Let's see, 1985. I can only imagine that the song decried by you and Damo is overly produced synth-driven pap? Or perhaps a Stan Bush ballad?
Comment by MVD
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
If you're after a Wendy Hughes fix (and we all need one now and then), I would much more readily recommend Careful, He Might Hear You, which I reviewed and you commented on last week.
Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic
Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight