Frenchman's Farm

Frenchman's Farm
Theatrical film poster
Directed by	Ron Way
Written by	James Fishburn Ron Way Matt White
Based on	original script by William Russell
Produced by	James Fishburn Matt White
Starring	Tracey Tainsh David Reyne Ray Barrett John Meillon Norman Kaye
Cinematography	Malcolm McCulloch
Edited by	Pippa Anderson
Music by	Tommy Tycho
Production company	Mavis Bramston Productions
Release date	1986 (1986)
Running time	86 minutes
Country	Australia
Language	English
Budget	A$2.47 million [1]
Box office	A$2,780 [2]

Frenchman's Farm is a 1986 Australian horror mystery film. ^[3]

Plot synopsis

Jackie Grenville (Tracey Tainsh), a university law student, is motoring through rural Queensland, on her way to Brisbane, when her car breaks down. ^{[4] [5]}

When she attempts to seek help, Jackie finds herself at a property called 'Frenchman's Farm'. She inadvertently witnesses the murder of a World War II soldier by a man in French Revolutionary uniform. After discovering the soldier was killed in 1944, Jackie realises she has mysteriously travelled back in time to the 1940s. ^{[4] [5]}

Returning to her car, Jackie is transported back to present time. Unable to convince the authorities of what happened, she retraces her steps, with the help of her boyfriend Barry Norden (David Reyne). Together they return to the farm to investigate the murder and solve the mystery. In the process, they end up unearthing an unexpected fortune, an ancient curse and a string of murders – while trying to evade a crazed killer. ^{[4] [5]}

Cast

• Tracey Tainsh as Jackie Grenville
• David Reyne as Barry Norden
• Norman Kaye as Reverend Aldershot
• John Meillon as Bill Dolan
• Ray Barrett as Harry Benson
• Phil Brock as John Hatcher
• Andrew Blackman as John Mainsbridge
• Andrew Johnston as William Morris

Production

Filming started 17 February 1986. ^[6]

References

1. "In Production", Cinema Papers , November 1985 p49
2. "Australian Films at the Australian Box Office", Film Victoria Archived 9 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine accessed 24 October 2012
3. David Stratton, The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry, Pan MacMillan, 1990 p294-295
4. "Frenchman's Farm 1987". Screen Australia . Retrieved 3 November 2025.
5. "Frenchman's Farm". www.letterboxd.com. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
6. "Australian Productions Top $175 million", Cinema Papers, March 1986 p64

External links

• Frenchman's Farm at IMDb
• Frenchman's Farm at Rotten Tomatoes
• Frenchman's Farm at Oz Movies
• Frenchman's Farm at Screen Australia
• Frenchman's Farm at Letterbox DVD