The Sentimental Bloke
About The Sentimental Bloke
Bill, a Woolloomooloo larrikin, comes out of jail after a raid on a two-up game and swears off gambling and drink. He falls for Doreen, who works in a pickle factory, and has to get past a sharper rival, the Stror 'at Coot. They quarrel, then marry. Bill drops his mate Ginger Mick and the pubs. He and Doreen take over an uncle's orchard, and they have a baby.
Cast & crew
More about The Sentimental Bloke
Raymond Longford produced and directed. Lottie Lyell co-wrote it with him and plays Doreen. Arthur Tauchert plays Bill. Gilbert Emery is Ginger Mick. Arthur Higgins photographed it. E. J. Carroll distributed it. The Australian release was October 4, 1919. It runs 106 minutes. Street scenes were shot in Woolloomooloo, the orchard in the Hornsby Valley, interiors at Wonderland City in Bondi, and some skies in Adelaide. The budget is given as £2,000.
Themes
Background
Dennis's poems were already a popular Australian book in 1915. Longford's film came out four years later, during a short stretch when Australian features were still being made for local and British release.
In film history
It was a hit in Australia, New Zealand, and Britain, and it fixed Tauchert's Bill as the screen version of Dennis's bloke. The NFSA's 2004 restoration put that cut back into circulation.
Making
Lyell was both co-writer and the pickle-factory girl. Higgins shot the Woolloomooloo streets rather than a backlot stand-in for the suburb.
Reviews
Variety called it the best Australian-made feature to that date. The Argus called the adaptation excellent. The Advertiser called the film deeply human and true.
Audiences
By 1922 the reported take was over £33,000, against a budget of £2,000. It played in Australia, New Zealand, and Britain.
Look
Arthur Higgins shot the Woolloomooloo streets, the Hornsby Valley orchard, and the Wonderland City interiors.
Preservation
The National Film and Sound Archive restored the film and premiered that version at the Sydney Film Festival in 2004. A copy is on the Internet Archive.
Notes
- The film adapts C. J. Dennis's 1915 verse novel The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke, and the intertitles keep his slang.
- By 1922 reported returns were over £33,000. A 1931 claim put the worldwide take at £50,000.
- Longford and Lyell followed it with Ginger Mick in 1920. A remake appeared in 1932.
- The National Film and Sound Archive restoration premiered at the Sydney Film Festival in 2004.
- Variety called it the best Australian feature made to that date.
Scenes
- Bill is picked up in a raid on a two-up game.
- He courts Doreen against the Stror 'at Coot.
- He and Doreen leave Ginger Mick and take the uncle's orchard, with a baby.
Influenced by
- C. J. Dennis's 1915 verse novel The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke
Influenced
- Ginger Mick (1920)
Also available
- Internet Archive (Sentimental_bloke)
