Rabit Proof Fence

I am glad i saw this movie today a little late though which is 7 years after its release.. but its never too late to catch up on hidden gems such as these..

Rabbit-Proof Fence is based on the book, "Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence" by Doris Pilkington Garimara who happens to be the daughter of Molly Kelley one of the main characters of this powerful movie, the film tells the story of three Aboriginal girls, 14-year old Molly Kelley, her 8-year old sister Daisy, and their 10-year old cousin Gracie who are abducted by police in 1931 from their families at Jigalong, an Aboriginal settlement on the edge of the Little Sandy Desert in northwest Australia, the three girls are sent to the Moore River Native Settlement near Perth. Here the children must adapt to the wretched conditions. Herded into mass dormitories, they are not allowed to speak their native language, are subject to strict discipline, and, if they break the rules, are put into solitary confinement for 14 days. The movie focuses on their escape from confinement in a government camp for half-castes and their return home across the vast and lonely Australian Outback. This is a beautiful story of enormous courage, told with honest emotion.

Followed by the Aborigine tracker, Moodoo (mindblowing performance from David Gulpilil), the girls make their escape using a "rabbit-proof fence" as a navigation tool, they walk 1500 miles across the parched Outback to return to Jigalong. The rabbit-proof fence was a strip of barbed-wire netting that cut across half of the continent and was designed to protect farmer's crops by keeping the rabbits away. The girls walked for months on end often without food or drink, not always sure of the direction they are going, using all their ingenuity and intelligence along the way just to survive. The stunning Australian landscape is magnificently photographed and a haunting score natural sounds of birds, animals, wind and rain into music that adds a mystical feeling to the journey.

The performances by amateur actors Evelyn Sampi, Tianna Sansbury, and Laura Monaghan (who had never seen a film before let alone acted in one) are authentic and heartrendingly affecting. Kenneth Branagh gives a strong but restrained performance as Mr. Neville, the minister in charge of half-castes.

Rabbit-Proof Fence is an honest film that emphasises on the courage and natural wisdom of the girls and teaches us to go on in life with courage,determination and grit in order to achieve one's goal.. yes the path is not easy for sure....