Australian Women's Weekly (1933 - 1982), Wednesday 23 June 1971, page 15


CHARLIE CHAPLIN STOLE THE SHOW

at the 1971

Cannes

Film

Festival

AMONG the celebrities who attended this year's Cannes Film Festival were ex-Beatle John Lennon, his Japanese wife, Yoko, and French star Jeanne Moreau (right).

AUSTRALIA'S entry

in this year's Cannes

Film Festival received a

gratifyingly good recep-

tion from the blase Festival crowd.

The film was "Outback," starring the late Chips Rafferty, young English actor Gary Bond, Sylvia Kay (wife of the film's director, Ted Kotcheff), and Donald

Pleasence.

This was the first time an Australian film had been entered in the Cannes Film Festival.

There was some talk that some of the violent scenes

(particularly a horrifying kangaroo hunt) might damage Australia's image

and deter tourists.

By SUSY VADER

But the film's director, Ted Kotcheff," said, "Did 'Black-board Jungle' stop people from going to the United

States?"

Ted Kotcheff worked in Australia for seven months on the film. He told me, with obvious relish, his three strongest memories of his stay were: the Opera House, Paddington terrace houses, and the two-up schools.

The last he claims were research for the film and "Outback" has benefited

from his first-hand experi-ence with a marvellous twoup scene.

When the film is released in Paris about August or September, it will be titled

"Le Réveil Dans la Terreur" ("Wake in Fright," its title in Australia) because

● And two Australian films were among the 400 shown to the star - studded audiences.

"L'Arriére Pays," which is

the closest translation of

"Outback," doesn't exactly fill the bill.

It will then go to America, England, and finally Aus-tralia.

Also shown at the Festival was "Walkabout," another film with an Australian set-

ting, which was entered by

Great Britain.

This is a story of a young girl and her little

brother lost in the desert and

befriended by an Aboriginal (David Gumpilil, whose authenticity is the film's strength ).

Gala opening

"Outback" and "Walk-about" were two of the more than 400 films on show dur-

ing the two-week Festival.

The Cannes Film Festival —the 25th—got away to a spectacular start with the opening night at the Palais

du Festival.

Here Australia's flag flew for the first time with those of the other exhibiting countries.

Thc U.S. aircraft carrier Forrestal was floodlit for the occasion and the tedium of waiting for the celebrities to arrive was relieved by the antics of starlets making their entrance several times.

A boy arrived on a foothigh "monkey" motor-bike, a very chic woman came on an ordinary bicycle, and gendarmes adjusted their immaculate white gloves like matrons at a christening.

There were hot pants everywhere and flamboyant outfits to catch the eye.

I was almost too dazzled

by sequins and glitter-fabric dinner jackets to recognise

the celebrities when they finally arrived.

Of course, they are always

different in the flesh. I noticed Charlton Heston

(thinning on top but as handsome as ever), Coc-cinelle, lovely Michele Mor-gan, president of the jury, and Charlie Chaplin.

Star mobbed

Chaplin was mobbed as he arrived with his wife, Oona, and daughter Josephine. Later he received a tremen-dous ovation as he was pre-sented with the red ribbon of Commander of the Legion

GARY BOND (right)

and co-star Donald Pleasence in a scene from the Australian film "Wake In Fright," which was shown at the Festival retitled "Outback."

of Honor (the highest French civil decoration).

Everyone got to their feet to applaud and Chap-lin's eyes filled with tears. He then borrowed a cane from the Minister of Cul-tural Affairs, Jacques Duha-mel, and for five minutes

CHARLIE CHAPLIN became a Commander of the Legion of Honor at a ceremony during the 1971 Cannes Film Festival.

became his screen tramp

character once more with

shuffling gait and twirling

cane.

The next day he attended the showing of his non-competing "City Lights."

Directors Bunuel, Wyler, Antonioni, Rene Clement, Bresson, Kobayashi, of Japan, Fellini, Jasny, of Czechoslovakia, and Ander-son, of Britain, were all there to receive awards pre-sented by Mia Farrow.

Unfortunately Orson

Welles was unable to attend as he was to accompany Jeanne Moreau — who said she hadn't a thing to wear and therefore couldn't go! But I saw her the following day on the terrace at the

Carlton Hotel in what

appeared to be a perfectly presentable dress.

Jeanne was at a table with Milos Forman (the Czech director who made the marvellous "Firemen's Ball" and entered "Taking Off' in the Festival), Susan Sontag, who wrote and directed "Broder Carl," which was shown in Cannes, and John and Yoko Lennon.

The Rolling Stones turned up later for the showing of

their film "Gimme Shelter."

The general impression of

the Cannes Film Festival is

one of wheeling and dealing as well as intensive "unspooling" (to quote "Variety")

of films.

Ted Kotcheff told me he

preferred the Venice Festi-val, which is more relaxed and informal.

In Cannes even Peter

Fonda, turning up in fringed suede, was refused admit-tance to his own film! Bow

ties are de rigueur — no matter if they're candystriped or polka-dotted.