The Big Steal (1990 film)

Last updated

The Big Steal
The Big Steal poster.jpg
Theatrical poster
Directed by Nadia Tass
Written by David Parker
Produced byDavid Parker
Nadia Tass
Starring Ben Mendelsohn
Claudia Karvan
Steve Bisley
Marshall Napier
Damon Herriman
CinematographyDavid Parker
Edited byPeter Carrodus
Music by Chris Gough
Philip Judd
Distributed byHoyts Distribution
Release date
  • 20 September 1990 (1990-09-20)
Running time
99 minutes
CountryAustralia
LanguageEnglish
Box office$2,351,628 (Australia)

The Big Steal is a 1990 Australian teen comedy film set in Melbourne, Australia directed by Nadia Tass starring Ben Mendelsohn, Claudia Karvan and Steve Bisley. David Parker was the scriptwriter and cinematographer. The film won three Australian Film Institute awards.

Contents

Plot

Ben Mendelsohn plays 18 year-old Danny Clark in Footscray, Melbourne, a young man who is looking to increase his cool factor in order to secure the affections of Joanna, played by Claudia Karvan.

Danny offers to take Joanna out for a ride in a Jaguar as a way to impress her, but his actual vehicle is a 1963 Nissan Cedric which Danny knows is not 'cool'. In need of a Jaguar in a hurry, Danny decides to trade the Nissan Cedric for a more impressive vehicle.

Gordon Farkas, a crooked used car salesman played by Steve Bisley, tricks Danny into buying a 1973 Jaguar XJ6. The Jaguar engine, true to form, blows up. After a confrontation which culminates with Joanna leaving Danny, an investigation of the engine reveals it's been swapped by Gordon Farkas. Danny sets about seeking justice and winning back Joanna's affections.

Daniel and friends trick Gordon while his car is parked in a multi storey car park, and put the blown up engine in Gordon's Jaguar. Gordon, drunk, drives off without realising. He is arrested for going through a red light and for being drunk. Danny now has a perfect 4.2 l Jaguar to impress Joanna, which he does briefly when her parents are away for the weekend, until they return and surprise them and Danny flees.

Everything unravels when Gordon mistakenly believes that Joanna's father has stolen his Jaguar engine and steals that car in error, defacing it, later getting his comeuppance. Various car chases result in Gordon failing to catch Danny, and a postscript shows Gordon serving 5 years in Pentridge prison for 37 Motor Traders Act offences, Danny and Joanna getting married later that year, and his friends in their ideal jobs in computing and car sales.

Cast

Production

The film was originally known as Mark Clark Van Ark. There were problems raising the money so Tass and Parker mortgaged their house with ANZ Bank, as they did with their first film. [1]

The movie was shot from 6 November to 22 December 1989. [2]

Awards

AwardCategorySubjectResult
AACTA Awards
(1990 AFI Awards)
Best Film Nadia Tass Nominated
David Parker Nominated
Best Screenplay, Original or Adapted Won
Best Actor Ben Mendelsohn Nominated
Best Actress Claudia Karvan Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Steve Bisley [3] Won
Best Supporting Actress Maggie King Nominated
Best Original Music Score Philip Judd Won
Best Sound Dean GawenNominated
John WilkinsonNominated
Best Production Design Paddy ReardonNominated

Soundtrack

Music: Chris Gough and Philip Judd.

The film includes songs by Philip Judd and Tim Finn, the Makers, Schnell Fenster, Boom Crash Opera, Mental As Anything, Bang The Drum, the Breaknecks, Big Storm and the Front Lawn.

Box office

The Big Steal grossed $2,351,628 at the box office in Australia. [4]

Home media

The Big Steal was released on DVD by Umbrella Entertainment in October 2003. The DVD is compatible with all region codes and includes special features such as the original theatrical trailer, Umbrella Entertainment trailers, original cast audition tapes, interviews with Nadia Tass, David Parker, Ben Mendelsohn, Claudia Karvan and Steve Bisley as well as audio commentary by Nadia Tass and David Parker. [5]

Umbrella Entertainment released The Big Steal on Blu-ray in September 2021. The Blu-ray is compatible with all region codes, retains the extra features from the DVD release, and includes a new audio commentary by David Parker, moderated by film buff Paul Harris.

Cars appearing in the film

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jaguar XJ</span> Series of British luxury cars (1968–2019)

The Jaguar XJ is a series of mid-size/full-size luxury cars produced by British automobile manufacturer Jaguar Cars from 1968 to 2019. It was produced across five basic platform generations with various updated derivatives of each. From 1970, it was Jaguar's flagship four-door model. The original model was the last Jaguar saloon to have been designed under the leadership of Sir William Lyons, the company's founder, and the model has been featured in countless media and high-profile appearances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Mendelsohn</span> Australian actor

Paul Benjamin Mendelsohn is an Australian actor. He first rose to prominence in Australia for his break-out role in The Year My Voice Broke (1987). He gained international attention for his starring role in the crime drama Animal Kingdom (2010). He has since had roles in films such as The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Starred Up (2013), Lost River (2014), Mississippi Grind (2015), Rogue One (2016), Darkest Hour (2017) and Ready Player One (2018).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Infiniti Q45</span> Motor vehicle

The Infiniti Q45 is a full-size luxury sedan manufactured by Nissan for its Infiniti brand, spanning model years 1989-2006 and three design generations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SS Jaguar 100</span> Motor vehicle

The SS Jaguar 100 is a British 2-seat sports car built between 1936 and 1939 by SS Cars Ltd of Coventry, England. The manufacturer's name 'SS Cars' used from 1934 maintained a link to the previous owner, Swallow Sidecar, founded in 1922 by Walmsley and Lyons to build motorcycle sidecars. In March 1945 the S. S. Cars shareholders agreed to change the name to Jaguar Cars Limited.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nissan Cedric</span> Motor vehicle

The Nissan Cedric is a large automobile produced by Nissan since 1960. It was developed to provide upscale transportation, competing with the Prince Skyline and Gloria which were later merged into the Nissan family. In later years, the Nissan Skyline was positioned as a sports sedan/coupe, whereas the Nissan Gloria was turned into a sporty version of the Cedric.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Austin 7</span> Motor vehicle

The Austin 7 is an economy car that was produced from 1923 until 1939 in the United Kingdom by Austin. It was nicknamed the "Baby Austin" and was at that time one of the most popular cars produced for the British market and sold well abroad. Its effect on the British market was similar to that of the Model T Ford in the US, replacing most other British economy cars and cyclecars of the early 1920s. It was also licensed and copied by companies all over the world. The first BMW car, the BMW Dixi, was a licensed Austin 7. In France they were made and sold as Rosengarts, and in the United States they were built by the American Austin Car Company. In Japan, Nissan also used the 7 design as the basis for their first cars, although not under licence. This eventually led to a 1952 agreement for Nissan to build and sell Austins in Japan under the Austin name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Bisley</span> Australian actor (born 1951)

Steve Bisley is an Australian writer, film and television actor. He is best known for his roles in the films Mad Max (1979) and The Great Gatsby (2013). On television, some of his better-known roles include Detective Sergeant Jack Christey in Water Rats and Jim Knight in Doctor Doctor.

<i>The Year My Voice Broke</i> 1987 Australian film

The Year My Voice Broke is a 1987 Australian coming of age drama film written and directed by John Duigan and starring Noah Taylor, Loene Carmen and Ben Mendelsohn. Set in 1962 in the rural Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, it was the first in a projected trilogy of films centred on the experiences of an awkward Australian boy, based on the childhood of writer/director John Duigan. The film itself is a series of interconnected segments narrated by Danny who recollects how he and his best friend Freya grew apart over the course of one year. Although the trilogy never came to fruition, it was followed by a 1991 sequel, Flirting. The film was the recipient of the 1987 Australian Film Institute Award for Best Film, a prize which Flirting also won in 1990.

<i>Malcolm</i> (film) 1986 Australian film

Malcolm is a 1986 Australian cult film comedy, written by the husband-and-wife team of David Parker and Nadia Tass, and directed by Nadia Tass. The film stars Colin Friels as Malcolm, a tram enthusiast who becomes involved with a pair of would-be bank robbers. His co-stars are Lindy Davies and John Hargreaves. The film won the 1986 Australian Film Institute Award for Best Film, and seven other AFI awards including Best Original Screenplay and Best Director.

David Parker is an Australian cinematographer, film producer, screenwriter, and film director.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claudia Karvan</span> Australian actress (born 1972)

Claudia Karvan is an Australian actress and producer. As a child actor, she first appeared in the film Molly (1983) and followed with an adolescent role in High Tide (1987). She portrayed a teacher in The Heartbreak Kid (1993) – the film was spun off into a TV series, Heartbreak High (1994–1999), with her character taken over by Sarah Lambert. Karvan's roles in television series include The Secret Life of Us (2001–2005), Love My Way (2004–2007), Newton's Law (2017) and Halifax: Retribution (2020). She won Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Television Drama at the AFI Awards for her appearance in G.P. (1996). She won two similar AFI Awards for her role in Love My Way and in 2014 for her work in The Time of Our Lives (2013–2014). As a co-producer and co-writer on Love My Way, she won three further AFI Awards for Best Drama Series in 2005, 2006 and 2007. Karvan was inducted into the Australian Film Walk of Fame in 2007 in acknowledgment of her contributions to the Australian film and television industry. From 2010 to 2011, she starred in the drama series Spirited, which she co-created and was executive producer. She appeared as Judy Vickers in Puberty Blues. Karvan has co-produced House of Hancock and Doctor Doctor (2016–2021). In 2021 she co-created, co-produced and starred in the TV drama series, Bump.

<i>Love My Way</i> Australian television series

Love My Way is an Australian television drama series created by John Edwards and Claudia Karvan, which premiered on Fox8 on 22 November 2004, before moving to W. for its second season, and Showtime for its third and final season, concluding on 19 March 2007. The series stars Claudia Karvan, Asher Keddie, Brendan Cowell, Daniel Wyllie, Lynette Curran, Alex Cook, Max Cullen and Gillian Jones. It was produced by Southern Star Group for Foxtel, with Kim Vecera and Mike Sneesby serving as executive producers for the series.

Nadia Tass is an Australian theatre director and film director and producer. She is known for the films Malcolm (1986) and The Big Steal (1990), as well as an extensive body of work in the theatre, both in Australia and internationally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Damon Herriman</span> Australian actor (born 1970)

Damon Herriman is an Australian actor. He is best known for his roles as Dewey Crowe on the FX neo-western crime series Justified (2010–15), and Romeo on the Starz drama miniseries Flesh and Bone (2015). He is also known for having played Charles Manson twice, first on the second season of the Netflix psychological crime thriller series Mindhunter, and later in the comedy drama film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daimler Sovereign</span> Motor vehicle

Daimler Sovereign was a name applied by British manufacturer Jaguar Cars to a sequence of luxury automobiles built by it but carrying the Daimler badge between 1966 and 1983.

<i>Amy</i> (1997 film) 1997 Australian film

Amy is a 1997 Australian film written by David Parker and directed by Nadia Tass, starring Alana De Roma in the title role, Rachel Griffiths, Ben Mendelsohn, and Nick Barker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jaguar XJ (X350)</span> British saloon car (2002–2009)

The Jaguar XJ (X350) is a full-size four-door luxury saloon car manufactured and marketed worldwide by Jaguar Cars for model years 2003–2009 as the third generation of the Jaguar XJ saloon, carrying the internal designation X350 and the internal designation X358 following its 2007 intermediate facelift. Both the X350 and X358 were available with a six-speed automatic transmission, a range of petrol and diesel engines, numerous trim levels, and short wheelbase (2003–2009) or long wheelbase (2005–2009) car body configurations. Extended-length models were the longest vehicles Jaguar had manufactured.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jaguar XJ (X300)</span> Saloon car (1994–1997)

The Jaguar XJ (X300) is a full-size luxury saloon car manufactured by Jaguar Cars between 1994 and 1997. It was the first Jaguar XJ produced entirely under Ford Motor Company ownership, and can be considered an evolution of the outgoing XJ40 generation. Like all previous XJ generations, it features the Jaguar independent rear suspension arrangement. The design of the X300 placed emphasis on improved build quality, improved reliability, and a return to traditional Jaguar styling elements.

<i>Gangsta Granny</i> (film) 2013 television film directed by Matt Lipsey

Gangsta Granny is a British comedy-drama television film based on David Walliams' 2011 children's comedy fiction book of the same name. The adaptation is by Kevin Cecil and Andy Riley. The first broadcast was on BBC One on 26 December 2013 at 6.05 PM. A sequel was released in December 2022, with an almost entirely different cast.

References

  1. David Stratton, The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry, Pan MacMillan, 1990, p. 329.
  2. "Production Survey", Cinema Papers, March 1990, p. 72.
  3. "Kodak/Atlab Cinema Collection – The Big Steal (1990)". National Film and Sound Archive. Archived from the original on 12 November 2009. Retrieved 3 February 2010.
  4. Film Victoria – Australian Films at the Australian Box Office
  5. "Umbrella Entertainment". Archived from the original on 2 January 2012. Retrieved 15 May 2013.
  6. "The Big Steal (1990) Movie Review".

Bibliography