They're a Weird Mob

Infobox Film
name = They're a Weird Mob


image_size = 215px
caption = theatrical poster
director = Michael Powell
producer = Michael Powell
writer = Emeric Pressburger "(as Richard Imrie)"
starring = Walter Chiari
Chips Rafferty
Clare Dunne
music = Score:
Alan Boustead
Lawrence Leonard
Songs:
Reen Devereaux
Walter Chiari
Mikis Theodorakis [IMDB [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061087/soundtrack Soundtracks] ]
cinematography = Arthur Grant
editing = Gerald Turney-Smith
distributor = BEF Film Distributors
released = 18 August 1966
"(premiere-Sydney)"
13 October fy|1966
"(Aus.-general)"
runtime = 112 minutes
country = Australia
language = English
budget = AUD$600,000 "(est.)"
imdb_id = 0061087

"They're a Weird Mob" is a popular 1957 Australian comic novel written by John O'Grady under the pen name "Nino Culotta," the name of the main character of the book. The book sold 130 000 copies in its first year of publication. [ [http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/weird-how-my-rello-won-his-fame/2008/09/12/1220857835068.html?page=fullpage Weird how my rello won his fame] ] It is also the name of the 1966 film based on the book, which was one of the last collaborations of the British filmmakers Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. The film stars Walter Chiari, Chips Rafferty and Clare Dunne.

The Novel

Plot

Giovanni 'Nino' Culotta is an Italian immigrant, who comes to Australia as a journalist, employed by an Italian publishing house, to write articles about Australians and their way of life for those Italians that might want to emigrate to Australia.

In order to learn about real Australians, Nino takes a job as a brickie's labourer (a labourer to a bricklayer) with a man named Joe Kennedy. The comedy of the novel revolves around his attempts to understand English as it was spoken in Australia, by the working classes, in the 1950s and 1960s (Nino had previously learned 'good' English from a textbook).

The novel is a social commentary on Australian society—specifically male, working class society—of the period. Women mostly feature as cameos in the story with the slight exception of Kay (whose surname is not revealed in the novel), who becomes Nino's wife. In the novel, Nino meets Kay in a cafe in Manly and their introduction is effected by Nino trying to teach Kay that she cannot eat spaghetti using a spoon.

The final message of the novel is that immigrants to Australia should count themselves fortunate and should make efforts to assimilate into Australian society, including learning to speak English. It is a positive, if slightly superficial, story about Australian society and values.

equels

The book has three sequels, "Cop this Lot", "Gone Fishin' ", and "Gone Gougin' " which feature largely the same cast of characters. "Gone Gougin' " takes place in 1975, 10 years after "Gone Fishin' ", in which Nino's two children (Young Nino and Maria) are now adults.

The novel "Gone Fishin' " is the only novel not to feature the main characters from the first two books, Joe, Edie and Dennis as the primary characters. They finally appear onwards from Chapter 11 (Page 162), and Dennis finally gets engaged.

In the following book, "Gone Gougin' " , only Nino, Joe and Dennis (now married) appear, and their wives are only briefly mentioned.

The Film

Plot

Nino Culotta is an Italian immigrant, newly arrived in Australia. He is expecting to work for his cousin as a sports writer on the Italian magazine his cousin has been producing. But when he gets there he discovers that his cousin has left leaving a substantial debt to Kay Kelly. Nino declares that he will get a job and pay back the debt.

The film tells how he does this, making new mates, and the growing attraction between Nino & Kay. All this despite some difficulties with Australian slang and Kay's father and his dislike of Italians. Much of the story is taken up with Nino's attempts to understand the aspirational values and social rituals of everyday urban Australians, and assimilate. The film deals with customs and manners of 1950s and 60s Australian society.

Cast

*Walter Chiari as "Nino Culotta"
*Clare Dunne as "Kay Kelly"
*Chips Rafferty as "Harry Kelly"
*Alida Chelli as "Giuliana"
*Ed Devereaux as "Joe Kennedy"
*Slim DeGrey as "Pat"
*John Meillon as "Dennis"
*Charles Little as "Jimmy"
*Anne Haddy as "Barmaid"
*Jack Allen as "Fat Man in Bar"

Cast notes:
*John O'Grady, the author of the novel, makes a cameo appearance as the grey-bearded drinker in the pub in the opening sequence of the film. ["They're a Weird Mob" DVD.]
*Alida Chelli was the girlfriend of Walter Chiari, but almost didn't get the part because she was thought to be too glamorous and might have upstaged Clare Dunne.

Production

"They're a Weird Mob" was optioned a number of times by filmmakers, but none of them come up with a workable screenplay until director Michael Powell brought in his long-time collaborator Emeric Pressburger, who wrote it under the pseudonym "Richard Imrie."

The film was shot at a number of locations in the area of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia: [IMDB [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061087/locations Filming locations] ]
*Bondi Beach
*Circular Quay (where the ferry comes ashore)
*Clark Island (the beach party)
*Hunter and Elizabeth Street
*Manly Beach
*Neutral Bay
*"The House That Nino Built" is located at 128 Greenacre Road in Greenacre, a suburb of Sydney The actors dug trenches, poured concrete, laid bricks and so on, and was then finished professionally and sold to raise funds for The Royal Life Saving Society. The stars' footprints were set in concrete slabs in the pathway.imdb title|0061087]

The film has been credited with the revival of the moribund Australian film industry, which led to the Australian "New Wave" films of the 1970s. [Stafford, Jeff [http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title.jsp?stid=3772&category=Articles "Age of Consent" (TCM article)] ]

Notes

External links

*
*
* [http://www.powell-pressburger.org/Reviews/66_Weird Reviews and articles] at the [http://www.powell-pressburger.org Powell & Pressburger Pages]
* [http://colsearch.nfsa.afc.gov.au/nfsa/search/display/display.w3p;adv=yes;group=;groupequals=;holdingType=;page=0;parentid=;query=Number%3A7652;querytype=;rec=0;resCount=10 They're a Weird Mob at the National Film and Sound Archive]