The Well (1997 film)
Encyclopedia
The Well is a 1997 Australia
n film, based on the novel
by Elizabeth Jolley
.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n film, based on the novel
The Well (novel)
The Well is a Miles Franklin Award winning novel by Australian author Elizabeth Jolley. It tells the story of two women, Hester and her young ward Katherine, and their relationship with one another. Hester, who has lived alone on a farm with her father for many years, is possessive of the much...
by Elizabeth Jolley
Elizabeth Jolley
Monica Elizabeth Jolley AO was an English-born writer who settled in Western Australia in the late 1950s. She was 53 when her first book was published, and she went on to publish fifteen novels , four short story collections and three non-fiction books, publishing well into her 70s and achieving...
.
Synopsis
The film is about a young girl named Katherine and her older friend Hester who live on an isolated farm run by Hester and her father Francis. Katherine works as a maid and wants to leave because there's too much work. Hester, however, becomes attracted to Katherine and holds her there, promising to give her less work in the future. When Francis dies, Hester decides to sell the farm for cash. They move to small cottage on the edge of the farm and plan to go to Europe. But a tragic accident and the theft of their money change their plans.Awards
- In 1997 it won three AFI Awards presented by the Australian Film Institute: Best Achievement in Production Design - Michael Philips, Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role - Pamela Rabe and Best Screenplay Adapted from Another Source - Laura Jones.
- In 1997 it was nominated for eight AFI awards: Best Achievement in Cinematography - Mandy Walker, Best Achievement in Costume Design - Anna Borghesi, Best Achievement in Direction - Samantha Lang, Best Achievement in Editing - Dany Cooper, Best Achievement in Sound - Anne Breslin, Gethin Creagh, Bronwyn Murphy, Best Film - Sandra Levy, Best Original Music Score - Stephen Rae, Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role - Miranda Otto.
- In 1997 it was nominated for the Golden PalmPalme d'OrThe Palme d'Or is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival and is presented to the director of the best feature film of the official competition. It was introduced in 1955 by the organising committee. From 1939 to 1954, the highest prize was the Grand Prix du Festival International du...
award at the Cannes Film Festival1997 Cannes Film Festival-Jury:*Isabelle Adjani *Gong Li *Mira Sorvino *Paul Auster *Tim Burton *Luc Bondy *Patrick Dupond *Mike Leigh *Nanni Moretti *Michael Ondaatje -Feature film competition:... - In 1997 Pamela Rabe received best actress at the Stockholm Film Festival.
- In 1998 it won the FCCA award presented by the Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards: Best Screenplay - Adapted - Laura Jones
- In 1998 it was nominated for three FCCA awards: Best Actor (Female) - Miranda Otto, Best Actor (Female) - Pamela Rabe and Best Cinematography - Mandy Walker
Cast
- Pamela RabePamela RabePamela Rabe is a Canadian / Australian stage, television and film actor. A graduate from the Playhouse Acting School, in Vancouver, Pamela Rabe is one of Australia’s most highly regarded and awarded actors. She is best known for her appearances in the films Cosi, Sirens and Paradise Road...
... Hester - Miranda OttoMiranda OttoMiranda Otto is an Australian actress. The daughter of actors Lindsay and Barry Otto and the sister of actress Gracie Otto, she began acting at age eighteen, and has performed in a variety of independent and major studio films....
... Katherine - Paul ChubbPaul ChubbPaul Chubb was an Australian film and television actor primarily in genres of comedy and drama. He was born Paul Dunford in Arncliffe, Sydney....
... Harry Bird - Frank WilsonFrank Wilson (Australian actor)Frank Edward Wilson was an Australian film, stage and television actor; musical comedy singer and director; and television game show and variety host.-Early life:...
... Francis Harper - Steve JacobsSteve JacobsSteve Jacobs is an American born film director and actor. He directed the movie La Spagnola , which was written and produced by Monticelli. In 2008 he directed John Malkovich in a film adaptation of J. M. Coetzee's novel Disgrace, again produced and adapted by Monticelli. It premiered at the...
... Rod Bordern - Geneviève LemonGenevieve LemonGenevieve Lemon is an Australian actress who has appeared in a number of soap operas – as Zelda Baker in The Young Doctors, Marlene "Rabbit" Warren in Prisoner and Brenda Riley in Neighbours...
... Jen Bordern - Simon LyndonSimon LyndonSimon Lyndon Simon Lyndon Simon Lyndon (born February 1971, in London is an Australian actor who grew up in Fremantle, Western Australia. He is a WAAPA graduate. He played Jimmy Loughlin in Chopper with Eric Bana, for which he won an AFI award for Best Supporting Actor and a Film Critics Circle...
... Abel - Kati Edwards ... Molly
- Luke Harrison ... Bordern Child
- Daniel Harrison ... Bordern Child
- Jennifer Kent ... Marg Trinder
- Stephen RaeStephen Rae (Australian composer)Douglas Stephen Rae is an Australian AFI-award winning composer, musician and actor. -Early life:Rae was born in Sydney, New South Wales, the second son and third child of Lesley and Tony Rae AM...
... Murray Trinder - Cameron Shanahan ... Bordern Child
- Miles Shanahan ... Bordern Child
- Paul Caesar ... Jock
- Annalise Lise ... Lover
- Jamie McLeod ... Hitchhiker