MovieChat Forums > Against the Wind (1978) Discussion > As good as you remembered it?

As good as you remembered it?

posted 17 years ago by balehead74
8 replies | jump to latest

OK. So now that the DVD is out I have some questions for you lucky guys who have purchased and watched it.

Was it as good as you remebered it? I really liked the love story, which I thought had the same hard working kind of romance as between JAmes and Anne in the Onedin line. Two people who are more or less forced together by practical reasons, but then grow to love each other. It makes it much more real and warm than those "love-at-first-sight-I-just-have-to-have-him"-stories. And that Jon English was the least handsome good guy I had seen.

What exactly were the crimes they committed (or were accused of) to get deported?

[–] my2cents 17 years ago

I don't remember the exact crimes for each person, but I do remember they were reasonably petty (stealing food to feed themselves or their children, rebellion, prostitution, that kind of thing; not murder as far as I remember but possibly killing in fear or self-defense kind of things).

I did find it just as stirring this time around as I did back in the 70's. I also introduced my husband to it for the first time and he was totally hooked. I still laughed and cried in the same places, and cheered and booed for the same people. I loved how the characters looked like real people and not plastic Hollywood-type stars. As much as I loved (and still love) Jonathan and Mary's romance, I have to say my favorite couple has always been Will and Polly. I just love how practical she was in the beginning, making the most of the situation and figuring out which one she wanted to have choose her. Even after her initial disappointment with where she wound up living (vs the type of place she envisioned) she made the best of it and he eventually won her heart and her respect (and vice versa). They were just too cute for words!

[–] LMB-3 17 years ago

I bought the dvd through E-bay. I am about halfway trough the story now. To me, the story is still as moving as I remembered it. And I was only about ten or something when I first saw it. But it made a huge impression then and it still is as impressive now. I just loved (and still love) the romance between Jonathan and Mary. And I am even more determined to visit Australia some day. What a beautiful country.

[–] emmamamma 16 years ago

It is even better. The story is timeless and the theme is so beautiful. just love it.

[–] scottiej23 16 years ago

I was thrilled to bits when I saw this in a ezydvd store. Bought it then and then and went straight home and watched about 4 hours immediately. I remember watching it when it was shown on TV, I was in grade 5 at the time. I was given the novel shortly after it was on TV because I liked it so much and have probably read it a dozen times or so over the years....it is quite good.

It holds up pretty well. some of the acting of the supporting cast is a little wooden, but that is a hallmark of Aussie acting of that period (I'm referring to support cast as a rule here so please don't rip into me).

Interestingly enough there are a couple of scenes that I remember from the original screening that weren't in on the DVD. But, seeing it's been almost 30 years, I figure I may well be mistaken. It would be interesting to find out for sure.

As far as how they ended up in Australia. Mary Mulvane (sic?) was transported for trying to steal her families cow back (it had been taken because they were unable to pay their rent). I can't recall how Jonathon Garrot (sic?) came to be there.....off the top of my head I have a fleeting memory of him stealing a horse or something, but don't quote me.

If you really want to know, post and I'll get the dvd out and find out for you.

[–] greenegg 16 years ago

Absolutely as good as when it first aired on PBS in the late 70s/early 80s. I have a hand-made copy that is a little blurry, and I still love it. Have to find the new DVDs asap. I remember having the script and reading it. The writing was good, and I think there was something so convincing about casting people who looked real, rather than over-collagened, boob-jobbed, pampered Hollywood phonies. I adore Will and Polly as much as Jonathan and Mary. The four main performers had excellent chemistry. Pike and Greville remain every bit as nasty as I remembered them.

As to what the original poster said about Jon English being less than handsome, I would agree in the traditional sense, but I remember finding him really appealing and in a strange way, sexy, when I first watched the series. I still find him that way. Jon was so compelling that I used him as a model for a male character I was creating in a historical novel. I have a strange way of working in which I create my own stories, but flesh out my characters with subtle inspiration from my favorite performers. I thought Jonathan said he was a highwayman, or something to that effect.

Put puppy mills out of business: never buy dogs from petshops!

[–] bluesgirl1980 8 years ago

Verry late reply to this thread, but: Jonathan Garrett (sp?) Was actually a real person,convicted of committing robbery on the king's highway and therfore sentenced to 7 (I think?) Years of deportation as a convict.

[–] OhNooos 7 years ago

Haha! I'm even later. That's very interesting about Jonathan. I wonder about Mary, now. At the end of the series, there was an epilogue statement about how these two were the ancestors of many in New South Wales today. I thought that meant symbolically, as in these were the types of people that settled and grew the colony.

[–] Artisan (3464) 4 years ago

Watching it at the moment and still really enjoying it, perhaps more than when I was a kid as I understand it more deeply. The acting and script, overall production hold up well too.