THE HORSEMEN COME RIDING IN!
40,000 HORSEMEN
and WITH THE FORCES ON THE PALESTINE FRONT
Saturday 27 August 2pm
Arc cinema will screen a 1941 classic preceded by historic footage of the Light Horse Brigade of 1918, accompanied by live music. * 40,000 Horsemen begins a season examining more than 90 years of Australian cinema that explored the connection between our nation and the societies and cultures of the Middle East. More information at nfsa.gov.au/arc
40,000 Horsemen
Preceded by Frank Hurley’s original footage of the Light Horse fighting in 1918,
(1941, Unclassified 15+, Dir: Charles Chauvel, Australia, 88mins, 35mm) Australian director Charles Chauvel’s wartime hit bridged the fascination of Australians with the Middle-east between both world wars. Ostensibly the story of the Australian Light Horsemen who led the last great cavalry charge of any war (and commanded by the director’s uncle, General Harry Chauvel), it was also a thinly veiled call-to arms for Australian boys to fight again in the Western Desert. Impressive, today, is the presence of a generation of Australian leading men, including Grant Taylor and especially ‘Chips’ Rafferty; fascinating is its ambiguous mix of cruel racial humour and affection for Ottoman enemies and friends. From the NFSA collection. With the Forces on the Palestine Front (1918, 23 mins @ 18 fps, 16mm), courtesy the Australian War Memorial. Live piano accompaniment by Joshua McHugh.
In a celebration of Australia’s Middle East*
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