My Top 10 Aussie Films

What I love most about being Australian is the sense of humour - we're a carefree, sarcastic bunch who aren't afraid to make fun of ourselves. :-) When it comes to cinema Australia has produced a lot of brilliantly funny, touchingly emotional and just-plain-fantastic movies. So I decided to list my ten absolute favourite Aussie films.

*I haven't included Moulin Rouge on this list as I personally don't consider it an Aussie film. I know it was shot in Sydney (at the time I actually lived not far from Fox Studios, where it was filmed), but because it isn't set in Australia and it isn't about Australia I've left it off my list. Moulin Rouge is one of my favourite musical movies, so it belongs on that particular 'Top 10 Musical Films' list (stay tuned - this list will appear on the blog soon!)*

**Notable mention also goes to Young Einstein and Reckless Kelly - two very silly, very funny movies by the very talented writer/director/actor Yahoo Serious; they missed making my list by a whisker.**

Here we go...

10) Strictly Ballroom - "A life lived in fear is a life half lived" - ahh the 'Aussie Dirty Dancing'. :-) It's all there - the gifted male dancer who longs to break out and do something unique, the naive yet naturally talented girl in desperate need of a makeover and of a strong man to teach her to dance, the montage as he does said teaching, the blossoming romance, the big dance finale. Yep it's Dirty Dancing minus the dirty part! :-) But what makes it so special is that Aussie humour - the movie pokes a lot of fun at itself.

9) Puberty Blues - "Rack off, moll" - the iconic surfer movie about two teenagers trying to fit in. The dialogue is spot on in its trashiness and the way high school kids relate to one another, bully one another and long to 'get it on' with the hottest guy/girl is also spot on. It's very camp and very cringe-worthy, but brilliant in its own way.  

8) Crocodile Dundee - "That's not a knife" - the film that defined Australians; everyone thought we all spend our time wrestling crocodiles in the outback! :-) The part where Mick brings his typical-Aussie-bloke attitude to New York City is priceless, mostly because that's exactly how it would have happened back in the 80s. Australia was this unique, faraway place that intrigued people (maybe it still is!). And movies like this perpetuated the 'outback Aussie' stereotype. 

7) Gallipoli - "How fast can you run?...As fast as a leopard" - back when Mel Gibson was 'Australian' he made this amazing war movie. It's essential viewing in every high school history class and I can still remember the emotions I felt when I first watched it. The ending has got to be one of the most crushing pieces of cinema ever created. You can't help but cry at the injustice of it all, especially when you know there were real-life men who lost their lives in Gallipoli. A harrowing yet brilliant film. 

6) The Dish - "That's bullshit. You just bullshitted NASA!" - a real-life satellite dish in a rural sheep paddock played a part in the moon landing. Who knew?! :-) Once again its the Aussie humour that makes this film so great. We're happy to laugh at ourselves and the absurdity of a bunch of blokes in the middle of nowhere actually being involved in one of the most important events in human history. Fantastic!

5) Two Hands - "Something that's good can still have a little bit of bad in it, and something that's bad still has a little bit of good"- one of Heath Ledger's first films that also featured Rose Byrne and true-blue Aussie bloke Bryan Brown. It's actually quite a funny movie that's full of the typical Aussie attitude. I loved it mainly because of Heath, but also because it was filmed in Sydney at locations that I recognised and came to know well when I moved there after high school.

4) Babe - "That'll do pig" - while this adorable movie doesn't ever name its setting it was filmed in New South Wales. The Hoggett's farm appears sometimes English (the cute farmhouse), sometimes Australian (the sheepdogs and paddocks), sometimes American (the accents) because they wanted it this way. The rural setting is meant to be fantastical in appearance - this is a family film after all. :-) To me this is still an Aussie film and one that will always be amongst my favourites. How could you not fall in love with Babe?

3) The Castle - "How's the serenity?" - made on a small budget in just 11 days, this brilliant film is all about an Aussie family who just want to enjoy the simple life. It's hysterical as it pokes fun at the image of working class Australians. I think it makes the most of our particular Aussie sense of humour and it's filled with absolute comic gems - those one liners that stay with you long after the movie's finished. It's a ridiculously quirky, family-centred story that is, rightly so, a true Aussie classic.

2) Muriel's Wedding - "You're terrible, Muriel" - over the years I've had to let down a few non-Aussies who'd always assumed Porpoise Spit was a real town. It may be fictional, but there are plenty of towns just like it in Australia. I grew up in one! :-) This movie deserves all of its international acclaim because it really is a wonderfully touching film about friendship and self-acceptance. I love Muriel because we've all been where she is at some point in our lives - all searching for our identity and making mistakes in the process. It's all part of being a young adult! 

1) The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert - "That's just what this country needs: a cock in a frock on a rock" - I couldn't possibly give this film anything other than the top spot on my list. It's a brilliant, brilliant film. I love it! The music, the costumes, that Aussie make-fun-of-ourselves humour - it's all there. Hugo, Terence and Guy are simply magnificent in their roles. You've got to hand it to them - they took a big risk making this film. Luckily for them it paid off! :-) This is more than just a film about 'cocks in frocks' though. It's about intolerance and acceptance, friendship and family. It's a beautiful film featuring some stunning Aussie scenery and it's one of those movies I never get sick of watching. 

So I leave you with the perfect opening scene of my Number 1 Aussie Film - enjoy! :-)


  1. Another film conspicuous in its absence Australia. Notable only for the scene where Hugh gets wet without his shirt on. I remember watching this movie in the theatre in Leicester Square trying not to speak so as not to let my accent give me away.....

  2. I clearly need to acquaint myself with more Aussie cinema. I love Muriel's Wedding and Strictly Ballroom.

  3. ...and I love Babe too, of course.