Comparing Beneath Clouds and Rabbit Proof Fence

I can’t seem to rid the film Beneath Clouds off my mind, and the more I think about writing about a film, the more I feel the urge to commit brutal dissections of that masterpiece by Ivan Sen. This time I will attempt to identify some of its similarities with another ‘aboriginal driven story’ (if I may call it so) Rabbit – Proof Fence (Philip Noyce, 2000) in the effort to understand the common themes and intentions that underlie these films and also to relate them to modern day Australian life.

I find it somewhat interesting that the film Rabbit Proof Fence, while set in 1930s Australia, implies almost identical meanings and messages to those portrayed through representatives of modern day Australia in the film Beneath Clouds. As an outsider living in Australia, it is probably not my place to draw assumptions and conclusions on issues surrounding the relationship between white and aboriginal Australians. Therefore my analysis here would be based solely on what I, as someone looking in at the Australian community, am able to draw from these two films.

The journey that Lena and Vaughn take is somewhat similar to that of Molly’s and Daisy’s (and Gracie’s), that is if one reads  their travels through the Australian landscape as symbolic of living a life laden with ambiguity attributed to insecurities, neglect and hopelessness. Oppression and abuse are exhibited quite explicitly in Rabbit Proof Fence and are also apparent in Beneath Clouds, particularly in the confrontation between the police and Vaughn’s aboriginal mates. Both sets of characters are driven by sheer hope and determination to escape their current situations and find new grounds and meanings for themselves – a better life, would be the more general and still applicable term here. The relationship between the two films provokes a frightening thought, if not a revelation. It is easy to feel disheartened and even angry while watching the blatant cruelty directed at aboriginals in the one that, as mention, is set in the early 1930s. The lack of outright violence or explicit anger associated with Beneath Clouds could mean that things may have changed since then. But then again, the deeply suppressed feelings of anger and hatred are so painfully palpable through the characters Vaughn and Lena who both live in contemporary Australia, almost as if implying the prevalence of such feelings persisting in concealment today. His mother’s death drives him to reconciliation and to forget the unpleasant past. It signifies the notion of gaining through loss, similar to the situation of Molly and Daisy when they had to leave Gracie behind (who was re-captured by the authorities)for their own safety and to ensure they could go on to find their mother. The shot of Lena on the train in the final scene, juxtaposed with shots of industrial sites and factories on the outside, so vividly demonstrate her mournful state at the insecurities associated with change, the fears experienced in this transitional stage, and the uncertainties that cloud the prospect of finding the security and sense of belonging that she and everyone who she represents are in need of.

 

Sequence Analysis: Beneath Clouds

I’ve always thought of the task of analysing the film Beneath Clouds as one too daunting to undertake. It is TOO brilliant a film, in my opinion, and I am still slightly afraid that I might do it injustice by presenting a wrongful interpretation of it. However, I find that as an obsessive lover of this film, it is my duty to attempt a dissection and thorough read of it. My excuse, would be that its director Ivan Sen, after all the work put into the creation of this beautiful and almost impeccable piece of work, would like to see it being appreciated through an effort of identifying and reading every bit and piece of its construct. Of course a thorough analysis of the entire film would be a little too much for this humble blog entry, so I will review a sequence from it and try to tie it with the ideas and themes that I THINK are echoed in this film.

Here we go…

Lena and Vaughn’s journey is symbolic not only of the search for identity and belonging that they are forced to delve into, it also signifies the status and place of Australian identity today. It works tirelessly to inform us that we are still in search for our identity, the meaning of that identity as well as for recognition and identification. The vastness and monstrosity of the Australian landscape is emphasised without any clear signs of exaggeration, and yet it does so well to display the extreme loneliness of the characters. We are immediately reminded of the role of this extravagant piece of nature in the Australian lifestyle and culture, and we instinctively think of the impossibility of the task that Lena and Vaughn are undertaking. A truly disturbing thought that implies the blatant hopelessness we tend to create towards the prospect of seeing one achieve self identification, recognition and security.  The film forces us to pay such close attention to representatives of minority communities that we have so often failed to sufficiently acknowledge. The absence or void surrounding Lena and Vaughn can only be symbolic of the ignorance or disregard we have towards the existence of the various minority groups. It toys with our sense of security and community as it reminds us of the loneliness rendered to the neglected. The characters Lena and Vaughn are such a powerful presence to us. We are constantly driven to look beneath the skin, behind the almost expressionless faces to seek out their thoughts and feelings, to pay due attention and care for these representations of the minority cultures. The very fact that we learn so much from the simple few words that they utter from time to time is testament to how much we do not know of them as well as the people and place they represent. Very often almost half of the entire frame is taken up by the beautiful and almost dream like sky and clouds, is this a reminder for us to remember the role of the aboriginal and their aboriginal and their cultures and beliefs, the significance of dream time? What I am sure of is that it adds to the idea of ambiguity, the same uncertainty that plagues our sense of identity in this period of transition. Its omnipresence becomes a statement of intent, a demand for acknowledgement and a place in the Australian community and at the same time a warning against intrusion of their own place and identity.

On a lighter and more optimistic note, our very ability and tendency to feel for both Lena and Vaughn and sympathize with them may very well indicate that we are on the right track in this journey of searching and providing recognition as well as finding a wholesome Australian identity for all.