Red Sky at Morning is a 1944 Australian melodrama set during the 19th century. It features an early screen performance by Peter Finch, who plays a convict who falls in love with the wife of a sea captain.
In 1812 Australia, Alicia Farley flees from her sadistic husband, Captain Farley. During a storm, she takes refuge in an inn in Parramatta and forms a relationship with Irish rebel Michael. Captain Farley tracks her down but she manages to escape with Michael and they both leave the country.
The script was adapted from a play by Dymphna Cusack which had been first performed at Sydney Player's Club in September 1935 and adapted for radio in 1938.[1] It was later revived in 1939.[2][3]
The play was one of the few Australian plays to be published during World War II.[4] It was often produced on radio and in amateur theatres during the subsequent years.
Noted critic Leslie Rees wrote of the play that:
An undertone of passionate resentment against injustice and coercion is heard, but there is also a mannered wit and an acute realisation of character, a clear-cut picture of the times. It is a play of style. Against these considerable merits must be men tioned a sparseness of action, especially the failure to satisfy expectations in the second act. However, the texture of the speech in this play is so fine, the quality of compassion so moving, that such a fault does not, to my mind at any rate, become paramount. To play a curtain-raiser in the same programme would help conceal the deficiency.[5]
Production
The film was mostly shot at Rupert Kathner's small studio in North Sydney during mid 1943, with some exteriors in Windsor and Mulgoa.[6][7]
Release
In 1944 the film was rejected for registration under the quality clause of the New South Wales Film Quota Act and it only received sporadic distribution.[8]
UK Release
In 1948 a 48-minute version of the film was screened in England by the distributor Carlyle Pictures, and received bad reviews. Kinematograph Weekly called the movie:
Heavy and vague in plot, badly acted, crudely dialogued and staged with touching economy, it fails utterly to justify its lengthy journey from 'Down Under.' And that's putting it mildly... Peter Finch, Jean McAllister, and John Alden... all exaggerate. The supporting players are, if possible, even worse... The time of the play is 1812, and the locale is Australian, but little else is clear. Incredibly old-fashioned and in articulate, it gets many unintentional laughs and might easily be mistaken for burlesque and parody.[9]
A thoroughly boring film which has absolutely nothing to justify its production. The story is weak, the settings are extremely monotonous, being almost entirely restricted to the interior of a house, and all the sound effects come from "off stage". In fact, this might well have been a photographed play, amateurishly produced. The cast are stiff and do little to bring to life the characters they play. Any semblance of good dialogue there might have been is lost by the extremely poor recording, and the quality of the photography is appalling.[10]
Re-release
In 1948 Gordon Wharton of Austral-American arranged for Ray Rushmer to distribute the film. Rushmer arranged for several changes to be made by Sydney filmmaker James Pearson, including a new opening and ending. The film was retitled Escape at Dawn and ran for 55 minutes. It was re-released in England under that title, emphasising the presence of Peter Finch in the cast.[6]
Preservation status
Red Sky at Morning is now considered a lost film.[11]
^"SOCIAL and PERSONAL". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 21 November 1938. p. 18 Supplement: Women's Supplement. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
^"AUSTRALIAN DRAMA". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 6 May 1939. p. 19. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
morning, 1944, film, morning, 1944, australian, melodrama, during, 19th, century, features, early, screen, performance, peter, finch, plays, convict, falls, love, with, wife, captain, morningdirected, byhartney, arthurwritten, byhartney, arthurbased, play, dym. Red Sky at Morning is a 1944 Australian melodrama set during the 19th century It features an early screen performance by Peter Finch who plays a convict who falls in love with the wife of a sea captain Red Sky at MorningDirected byHartney ArthurWritten byHartney ArthurBased ona play by Dymphna CusackStarringPeter Finch John AldenCinematographyRupert KathnerBob GouldEdited byAlex EzardRoss WoodProductioncompanyAustral American ProductionsDistributed byCarlyle Pictures UK Ray Rushmer 1948 Australia Release date1944Running time4 500 feet48 min UK version 55 min 1948 Australian version CountryAustraliaLanguageEnglish Contents 1 Synopsis 2 Cast 3 Original play 4 Production 5 Release 5 1 UK Release 5 2 Re release 6 Preservation status 7 See also 8 References 9 External linksSynopsis EditIn 1812 Australia Alicia Farley flees from her sadistic husband Captain Farley During a storm she takes refuge in an inn in Parramatta and forms a relationship with Irish rebel Michael Captain Farley tracks her down but she manages to escape with Michael and they both leave the country Cast EditPeter Finch as Michael Jean McAllister as Alicia John Alden as Captain Farley Dorothea Dunstan as Emma Desmond Rolfe as innkeeper Dorothy Whiteley as innkeeper s wifeOriginal play EditRed Sky at MorningWritten byDymphna CusackDate premiered1935Place premieredSydney Player s ClubOriginal languageEnglishGenremelodramaSettingSydneyThe script was adapted from a play by Dymphna Cusack which had been first performed at Sydney Player s Club in September 1935 and adapted for radio in 1938 1 It was later revived in 1939 2 3 The play was one of the few Australian plays to be published during World War II 4 It was often produced on radio and in amateur theatres during the subsequent years Noted critic Leslie Rees wrote of the play that An undertone of passionate resentment against injustice and coercion is heard but there is also a mannered wit and an acute realisation of character a clear cut picture of the times It is a play of style Against these considerable merits must be men tioned a sparseness of action especially the failure to satisfy expectations in the second act However the texture of the speech in this play is so fine the quality of compassion so moving that such a fault does not to my mind at any rate become paramount To play a curtain raiser in the same programme would help conceal the deficiency 5 Production EditThe film was mostly shot at Rupert Kathner s small studio in North Sydney during mid 1943 with some exteriors in Windsor and Mulgoa 6 7 Release EditIn 1944 the film was rejected for registration under the quality clause of the New South Wales Film Quota Act and it only received sporadic distribution 8 UK Release Edit In 1948 a 48 minute version of the film was screened in England by the distributor Carlyle Pictures and received bad reviews Kinematograph Weekly called the movie Heavy and vague in plot badly acted crudely dialogued and staged with touching economy it fails utterly to justify its lengthy journey from Down Under And that s putting it mildly Peter Finch Jean McAllister and John Alden all exaggerate The supporting players are if possible even worse The time of the play is 1812 and the locale is Australian but little else is clear Incredibly old fashioned and in articulate it gets many unintentional laughs and might easily be mistaken for burlesque and parody 9 The Monthly Film Bulletin called it A thoroughly boring film which has absolutely nothing to justify its production The story is weak the settings are extremely monotonous being almost entirely restricted to the interior of a house and all the sound effects come from off stage In fact this might well have been a photographed play amateurishly produced The cast are stiff and do little to bring to life the characters they play Any semblance of good dialogue there might have been is lost by the extremely poor recording and the quality of the photography is appalling 10 Re release Edit In 1948 Gordon Wharton of Austral American arranged for Ray Rushmer to distribute the film Rushmer arranged for several changes to be made by Sydney filmmaker James Pearson including a new opening and ending The film was retitled Escape at Dawn and ran for 55 minutes It was re released in England under that title emphasising the presence of Peter Finch in the cast 6 Preservation status EditRed Sky at Morning is now considered a lost film 11 See also EditList of lost filmsReferences Edit SOCIAL and PERSONAL The Sydney Morning Herald National Library of Australia 21 November 1938 p 18 Supplement Women s Supplement Retrieved 24 March 2012 AUSTRALIAN DRAMA The Sydney Morning Herald National Library of Australia 6 May 1939 p 19 Retrieved 24 March 2012 Details of original production at AusStage AUSTRALIAN PLAYS The Sydney Morning Herald National Library of Australia 3 October 1942 p 6 Retrieved 24 March 2012 THE DRAMA IN AUSTRALIA The West Australian Perth National Library of Australia 22 July 1939 p 5 Retrieved 24 March 2012 a b Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper Australian Film 1900 1977 A Guide to Feature Film Production Melbourne Oxford University Press 1998 197 Australian Films in the Making The Mercury Hobart Tas National Library of Australia 28 October 1944 p 9 Retrieved 25 March 2012 YOUR QUERIES The Mail Adelaide National Library of Australia 24 May 1947 p 3 Supplement SUNDAY MAGAZINE Retrieved 24 March 2012 THE STARRY WAY The Courier Mail Brisbane 17 July 1948 2 retrieved 17 December 2011 Red Sky at Morning Monthly Film Bulletin15 169 1 Jan 1948 80 Australia s Lost Films at National Film and Sound ArchiveExternal links EditRed Sky at Morning at IMDb Red Sky at Morning at National Film and Sound Archive Red Sky at Morning at Oz Movies Red Sky at Morning at AusStage Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Red Sky at Morning 1944 film amp oldid 1167010131, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
