The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith

Truly startling and mortifying and a real challenge because it shows everything as plain as it needs to be shown. It takes its time to show Jimmie as a man who is put down upon at every step by those he works for, under so many who see him at every turn as less than. Compounding that is that he elopes with a white woman, and she seems to have his child (until, well, you should watch to see the reveal on that which makes for a further wrinkle for Jimmie), and that others tell the woman to get away because... he's Black, after all, what, he cant be a farher. So when Jimmie finally snaps, it is not shown as some inevitable act, it is more as many common acts of violence are in the world: brutal, stupid and sudden escalation, which gets reframed by everyone, Jimmie and the White citizens, as "right" and "wrong." The thing aboht "Chant" is it's a story that means to reckon with the very real horrors of racism (it could be America or Australia or South America or anywhere), while at the same time the filmmakers are not making Jimmie Blacksmith into a sympathetic figure (which would be... not sure what that movie looks like!) Or, let me amend that, it is not that there isn't some sympathy that Shlepsi and company have for Jimmie, rather that he and the writers show that he is a man, originally shaped by a very low-wrung working class life with little education and the double problem of being mixed race (which is commented on later on in the film by the white folks who did care for him, in their way, once), so he is of his time just like everyone else is of their time. And everyone is already so scared of their own shadows that the murders make it into bedlam. You know Jimmie has gone way over the edge once he commits those murders, but going into the movie I had the (very) mistaken impression it was a series of revenge killings. But there isn't any sense in what is going on as being righteous or worth having some vicarious "yeah, you go, Jimmie!" Like say, oh, Django Unchained to give a basic example. While it's extreme to compare it to, oh, 12 Years a Slave, it is a film that looks on in despair at what humanity is capable of. The violence here is quick and ugly and senseless, and by the end there is little catharsis. But throughout the film there are nuances to the depictions of the Whites, and not everyone is out to immediately snuff out one of the Aborigines like Jimmie - the focal point to me about three quarters in with the more bookish man that Jimmie and his brother take along and they actually sit and talk, and while he brings up to Jimmie the bigger picture of what White's have given to Aborigines (alcohol, diseases, school), what so powerful is how muted it is. This isnt some giant dramatic scene, it is low key and sad and grubby. Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith is not always an easy watch except that Shlepsi is a terrific director of actors (Tom E Lewis's debut! But also Thompson, Barrett and Punch in a difficult role) and keeps the pacing here moving along well while finding time for meditative images (extreme close ups of ants and bugs in perpetual violence and conquering of their own), and even though it's set in the late 19th century, turn of the 20th, it packs a message without being preachy.

The haunting music score at this movie stays with me, more than anything that went before. Jimmie Blacksmith is an young aboriginal contractor, whose been done wrong, in a strong edgy performance by Tommy Lewis. Taking matters into his own hands, when he's denied food for him, and his newly wed, white woman (Mcgregor) from a ranch employer, he goes radge, and murders the family, where now him, wife, baby, and his close brother are fugitives. This fine Oz film really shows how blacks were treated, as compared to black slaves over in Louisiana, who of course were treated much worse. We really symphathise with Jimmy, who's anger can off at the drop of a hat. I loved the relationship between him and his male minder (Jack Thompson) the sole one defending him, while at large.I think Bryan Brown, would have the most thankless screen time in this. There's a lot of strong acting chops here, for one, that of Sumner's performances, which I really liked, as a police tracker, who shows anger, disdain, and pity for our most wanted.The outdoor high country locations chosen here, are magnificent, as is Lewis's engaging and honest performance, but it' that haunting music score that always comes back. Some strong shock violence, present here too, notably that of the kitchen massacre. Brilliant.

This critically acclaimed Australian film about an aborigine man pushed to the brink somehow ended up as a section 3 video nasty. Director Fred Schepisi left Australia for a decade after making this movie, directing films like Roxanne, Iceman and Six Degrees of Separation. That's because even though this movie was a big success, the promotional costs took away the profits, taking Schepsi's entire monetary investment on the film. Jimmie Blacksmith (Tom E. Lewis) is the son of an Aboriginal mother and a white father, a fact that brands him as an outcast even though Reverend Neville and his wife Martha attempt to raise him to have better opportunities than society would expect. Of course, when he goes out into the world to work, he's taken advantage of at every turn, from employees that don't pay him fairly to others that force him to found up other Aboriginals. Finally, when he gets a decent job on the Newby farm he's able to bring his girlfriend - already pregnant with another man's child - as well as two relatives to live with him. The Newby family soon turns against Jimmie, with even the women telling his girlfriend to take her child and leave him behind. He decides to put a scare into them, but it gets out of hand and nearly every Newby woman and child is hacked to pieces. Jimmie goes on the run but declares war on everyone that has wronged him, seeking out past employers and butchering them. Yet Jimmie can't stay on the run forever, not when the entire town - maybe the entire world - wants to see him hung. Just as much a lesson on racism as it was when it was released, The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith doesn't really belong amongst the video nasty cannibals and beasts. But there it remains.

If you're the sort of person who enjoys being depressed, The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith is the film for you. A short summary of the film is as follows. Young half aboriginal/half white boy is raised by a white Christian family. As he goes off to find a job, he discovers that every white person in the world is actually a racist. He tries to get over this fact by trying to lose his 'black soul', and become more like a white man. He is constantly cheated and laughed at by his white employers. Of course there is only one thing a decent person can possibly do when faced with this. He goes and chops up a couple of women and young girls with an axe. Sound fun so far? Well it gets better anyway, but I won't give away the whole plot in case you actually want to watch the movie. Of course one might say, but isn't the message important? Well, no. It is true that Aborigines were generally considered inferior at the time, and that there was some racism going on. But this film ruthlessly exaggerates it to prove a point, which appears to be that white society is a corrupter of black people. Leaving aside the negative storyline and the political point-scoring, however, the acting is fairly decent, and score is alright too. Apart from that, don't bother watching this.

source: The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith

Trailer—The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith

The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith

I have seen this several times and it remains the best film I've ever seen about racial oppression. White Australians are shown to be so deeply convinced of their own superiority they can only see Aborigines as half-human good for nothings. This is the story of a hal-aborigine raised by missionaries who tries and fails to be integrated into white society - even into it's fringes. Everything works here: performances, photography which captures something of 19th century Australian paintings, great music that evoked the tragedy of Jimmy's plight, and intelligent script and direction. The build up to Jimmy's explosion is perfectly sustained, and the violence unforgettable.

Deals with the antihero that goes over the edge...beyond obvious comprehension. Many miss the point...."he's half white." This film explore what structural racism produces, especially in that individual that seems to have the chance of crossing lines. Instead these are the individuals that are repeatedly humiliated and demeaned by those they are seeking acceptance from. This is the point of the film. It is the potential from the "half breed" that contextualizes the journey to where is own people/ family see him as a devil. He is a man gone rabid...tormented by the world he does not fit. This film is moving on many levels and provides a glimpse into a history foreign to many. A tragedy in the deepest sense.

THE CHANT OF JIMMIE BLACKSMITH is well regarded as one of the best Aussie movies of all time by those who've seen it and having just watched it for the first time I'm inclined to agree. It's a searing, realistic indictment of the prejudice and racism meted out to Aborigines by whites in turn-of-the-20th-century Australia, but the surprising thing is just how well it's handled: make no mistake, this is mature and literate filmmaking despite the controversy of the subject matter. The fine direction is complemented by a perfect array of performances, not least from the leads, and there are moments here among the most powerful and shocking of all cinema.