The Journalist (1979 film)

This article is about the Australian film. For the Yugoslav film, see Journalist (1979 film). For the Malayalam film, see Journalist (1993 film).

The Journalist
Film poster
Directed by	Michael Thornhill
Written by	Michael Thornhill Edna Wilson
Produced by	Pom Oliver
Starring	Jack Thompson Sam Neill
Cinematography	Donald McAlpine
Edited by	Tim Welburn Ron Williams
Production companies	FJ Promoters NSW Film Corporation
Distributed by	Roadshow
Release date	22 November 1979 (1979-11-22)
Running time	83 minutes
Country	Australia
Language	English
Budget	AU$400,000[1]
Box office	AU $52,000 (Australia)[2]

The Journalist is a 1979 Australian sex comedy about the romantic adventures of a journalist (Jack Thompson). It has the reputation as one of the worst Australian films of all time.[3]

Plot

Journalist Simon Morris has trouble with his love life. He is separated from his wife Wendy and daughter Suzie and lives with his girlfriend Liz.

Cast

• Jack Thompson as Simon Morris
• Sam Neill as Rex
• Elizabeth Alexander as Liz Corbett
• Carol Raye as Maggie
• Bud Tingwell as Sid Mitchell
• Penne Hackforth-Jones as Gillie Griffiths
• Frank Wilson as Vic Parson
• Dennis Miller as Junior Interviewer
• Chard Hayward as Barry
• Martyn Sanderson as Bert
• Jane Harders as Wendy Morris

Production

Money came from Roadshow, who wanted Jack Thompson to play the lead, and the New South Wales Film Corporation. The shoot started January 1979 and went for four weeks.[3]

Reception

The film was very poorly received critically and commercially. Thornhill:

The Journalist was a misfire completely and I think it was my fault entirely. We should never have had Jack Thompson. He was just miscast. He's not a comedian. He's a serious, solid actor. We should have had Sam Neill in the lead role and you would have had a debonair roue - it was meant to be a debonair roue. It was meant to be a piece of fluff, a piece of effervescent fluff that came out feeling like lard.[4]

Robert Macklin wrote a novelisation of the script for $5,000.[5]

References

1. Keith Connor, "The Journalist", Australian Film 1978-92, Oxford Uni Press 1993 p34
2. "Australian Films at the Australian Box Office", Film Victoria Archived 9 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 24 October 2012
3. David Stratton, The Last New Wave, Angus and Robertson, 1979 p 92-95
4. Interview with Michael Thornhill, Signist, 2 November 1998. Retrieved 14 October 2012
5. "Damned if you win, damned if you don't". The Canberra Times. Vol. 71, no. 22, 080. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 30 September 1995. p. 44. Retrieved 3 September 2018 – via National Library of Australia.

External links

• The Journalist is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive
• The Journalist at Oz Movies
• The Journalist at IMDb
• The Journalist at National Film and Sound Archive