| Dope | |
|---|---|
 Everyones 30 July 1924 | |
| Directed by | Dunstan Webb |
| Written by | Con Drew [1] |
| Starring | Gordon Collingridge Lorraine Esmond Charles Villiers |
| Cinematography | Lacey Percival |
Production company | Australasian Picture Productions |
| Distributed by | A. R. Shepherd |
Release date |
|
| Country | Australia |
| Languages | Silent film English intertitles |
Dope is a 1924 Australian silent film about a respected citizen who is blackmailed by someone from his past. It is considered a lost film. [3]
Hugh Murnin, a pillar of Sydney society, has a secret past as a pearler on Thursday Island, during which time he believes he killed a man in a drunken brawl. He is blackmailed by one of his old drinking mates, Slick Harvey, who also tries to seduce Murnin's daughter, Mildred (Lorraine Esmond).
Mildred's fiancé, Tom (Gordon Collingridge) exposes Harvey as the leader of a gang of opium smugglers and that it was he, not Murnin, who killed the man on Thursday Island. Mildred and Tom get married. [3]
The script was written by Sydney journalist and author Con Drew, and was originally titled The Trail of the Twang. [4] (This script was copyrighted in December 1922. [5] )
The film was made by a Queensland company (see below) but shot in Sydney "because no facilities existed in Queensland for producing pictures. There was no studio in Queensland, and all the suitable artists for the company’s purposes were resident in Sydney." [6] The mansion scenes were shot in a mansion owned by Lebbeus Hordern.
Shooting took place in April 1923, in part at Rushcutter's Bay and was completed by May but the film was not released until the following year. [3] [7] [8] The Bulletin commented "if the pitcher is up to the standard of Drew’s racing yarns it will do." [9]
The film received poor reviews and unenthusiastic public reception. [3] [10] The Sydney Truth did refer to a "recordbreaking run at the Lyric Wintergarden". [11]
The film appeared at the Lyric on a bill with a stage show involving jui jitsu set at an opium den. [12] [13]
The Bulletin said "The story is little better than a sensational front-page scoop in a yellow newspaper and there is a lot wanting on the technical side." [14]
Dope was the only film from Australasian Picture Productions, which is not to be confused with Australasian Films. The company was registered on 1 February 1923 in Queensland by promoters Stephen Perry and Percy McMahon with a capital of £25,000. [15] McMahon later said:
It was always my desire and intention to produce in Australia moving picture plays of a high moral character and in such pictures to propagate Roman Catholic sentiments. Such w'as the chief feature of the appeals made by me to the Roman Catholic clergy when canvassing them to subscribe for shares in the company, and the company’s shareholders consist almost entirely of Roman Catholic clergy. [6]
Under the terms of the corporation, Perry and McMahon were to receive £1,000 in part payment for their services, plus £1,560 annually for seven years and 6,000 fully paid-up shares.
By 30 June 1924 the company's profit and loss statement showed director's salaries of £1,705, office salaries of £154 and general expenses of £230. In December of the year the company went into liquidation owing £2,974. [16] [17]
The petition to wind up the company was made by James Duhig, the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Brisbane. [18] [19]
"The investigations satisfy me, that the company was a swindle", said Justice McNaughten in the Supreme Court of New South Wales. "An investigation is necessary...There was a gross fraud on the part of one of the promoters. All they did was to produce one abortive film. There is no doubt that this is a case for the most searching investigation." [20]
Litigation concerning the company was still going on in 1928. [21]
Uncivilised is a 1936 Australian film directed by Charles Chauvel. It was an attempt by Chauvel to make a more obviously commercial film, and was clearly influenced by Tarzan.
The Blue Mountains Mystery is a lost 1921 Australian silent film directed by Raymond Longford and co-directed by Lottie Lyell.
Fellers is a 1930 Australian comedy about three friends in the Australian Light Horse during the Palestine Campaign of World War I starring Arthur Tauchert, who was the lead in The Sentimental Bloke (1919). The film is mostly silent with a recorded music score as an accompaniment, but the last reel was synchronised with a few minutes of dialogue and a song.
The Hayseeds is a 1933 Australian musical comedy from Beaumont Smith. It centres on the rural family, the Hayseeds, about whom Smith had previously made six silent films, starting with Our Friends, the Hayseeds (1917). He retired from directing in 1925 but decided to revive the series in the wake of the box office success of On Our Selection (1932). It was the first starring role in a movie for stage actor Cecil Kellaway.
Fisher's Ghost is a 1924 Australian silent film directed by Raymond Longford based on the legend of Fisher's Ghost. It is considered a lost film.
Sunrise is a 1927 Australian silent film co-directed by Raymond Longford, who took over during filming.
The Enemy Within is a 1918 Australian silent film starring renowned Australian sportsman Snowy Baker in his first screen role.
A Rough Passage is a 1922 Australian silent film directed by Franklyn Barrett based on the novel by Arthur Wright. It was Barrett's final feature and is considered a lost film.
The Sealed Room is a 1926 Australian silent film directed by and starring Arthur Shirley. It is considered a lost film.
The Tenth Straw is a 1926 Australian silent film heavily inspired by the novel For the Term of His Natural Life. Little is known of the director and cast, but most of the film survives today.
Around the Boree Log is a 1925 Australian silent film by Phil K. Walsh adapted from the poems of "John O'Brien". It tells stories of a priest's life around the 1870s in the Goulburn area.
Painted Daughters is a 1925 Australian silent film directed F. Stuart-Whyte. Only part of it survives today.
The Golden West is an Australian film directed by George Young set in the Australian goldfields. It is considered a lost film.
Lacey Percival was an Australian cinematographer who worked on many early Australian silent films. He worked for the Australian Photo-Play Company then joined West's Pictures. When that company merged with Australasian Films he ran their weekly newsreel, Australasian Gazette until 1925.
The Price is a 1924 Australian silent film made with a largely amateur cast under the direction of Dunstan Webb. It is considered a lost film.
The Life Story of John Lee, or the Man They Could Not Hang is a 1912 Australian silent film based on a stage play about the true life story of John Babbacombe Lee.
The Life Story of John Lee, or the Man They Could Not Hang is a 1921 Australian silent film based on the true life story of John Babbacombe Lee. It is a remake of a 1912 film with some extra scenes of Lee's childhood.
The Australian Film Syndicate was a short lived Australian film production company based in North Sydney. According to novelist Arthur Wright, "A local draper put a lot of money into it, and lost it; though all the films produced were not 'duds.' One which paid its way well was an adaptation of my novel, Gamblers Gold."
The Diamond Cross is a 1911 Australian film from the Australian Film Syndicate.
Cockatoo Farm is a 1922 Australian musical comedy by Len Buderick. The show toured Australian regional areas and was popular. In November 1924 Everyones reported the Cockatoo Farm Company, the theatrical company who produced, had just completed "one of the most extended tours in the history of any travelling theatrical company."
