What does it mean to be Australian? In Australian media, an Aussie is typically portrayed as a Caucasian, larger-than-life, masculine male who tames crocodiles for a living and lives in the bush; the vast, yet stunning landscape that occupies over 70% of the country (1). This is how Australians want their country to viewed in the national spotlight. The problem is, this is not at all realistic. Australia is becoming a very multicultural country, with the amount of residents born over seas approaching nearly 25% (2), and the indigenous population nearing 550,000; a number that only represents the people who choose to identify as indigenous (2). The Caucasian male is quickly diminishing as a representation of the country, but other characteristics
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Mad Bastards is no fairy tale, it is a down to earth film that tackles a hard-to-swallow issue in modern day Australia, the struggle of indigenous Australians. From the beginning, the movie aims at the issues. T.J. is an impoverished indigenous man living in the slums of the city, struggling to stay out of criminal activity. He does not always beat the struggle, as he lets the alcohol take over, and he gets into fist fights. In Five Rivers, life seems even tougher for Bullet and his mum. Bullet’s mum, Nella, is an Alcoholic, although she strictly claims she is not. She is a victim of domestic violence, something she is ashamed of but is too lost to be able to do anything about it. She makes no effort to hide her troubles from her kids either, as they eat breakfast with beer bottles littering the breakfast table. Five Rivers is an impoverished town, further capitalizing the struggles faced today by Indigenous Australians. Despite the undertaking, the film shines light on the strength of the aboriginals as they remain happy through tough times. The film portrays aspects of indigenous culture that are of bliss to them; aspects that bring happiness into the disparity of the film. The opening credits show aboriginal children playing in the sand, laughing as they make paw prints with their fingers. It is the simplicity of the act and how much joy it brings that caught my eye, and it …show more content…
While this film does a tremendous job making an interesting story out of the poverty-stricken community, it also brings the real issues into a global spotlight. Unemployment and poverty are amongst the many issues faced by aboriginals today, both of which are portrayed in the movie. Although the film was made in 2010, it represents many issues that have been around since the late 1990’s and still preside up into 2015. In fact, poverty amongst Indigenous Australians is at an all time high, as 19.3% of Aboriginals live below the poverty line (4). In addition, unemployment correlates with poverty, and over 21% of able bodies aboriginals are unemployed (4). To put that into perspective, aboriginals are four times more likely to be unemployed than a non-indigenous Australian, who’s unemployment sits at about 5.7% (4). When determining why indigenous Australians are so much more likely to be impoverished, one cannot help but take into account the years of torment they have endeavored. Aboriginals have faced over 200 years of social, economical, physical, physiological and emotional problems (6), such as the Stolen Generations, race infused political injustices, and a variety of social issues, also revolving around race. Australia has been harder on indigenous citizens than any other race; Take Olympic runner Cathy Freeman for example. Cathy was placed under horrific stress to place Gold in the 2000 Olympics, because she
Mad Bastards is no fairy tale, it is a down to earth film that tackles a hard-to-swallow issue in modern day Australia, the struggle of indigenous Australians. From the beginning, the movie aims at the issues. T.J. is an impoverished indigenous man living in the slums of the city, struggling to stay out of criminal activity. He does not always beat the struggle, as he lets the alcohol take over, and he gets into fist fights. In Five Rivers, life seems even tougher for Bullet and his mum. Bullet’s mum, Nella, is an Alcoholic, although she strictly claims she is not. She is a victim of domestic violence, something she is ashamed of but is too lost to be able to do anything about it. She makes no effort to hide her troubles from her kids either, as they eat breakfast with beer bottles littering the breakfast table. Five Rivers is an impoverished town, further capitalizing the struggles faced today by Indigenous Australians. Despite the undertaking, the film shines light on the strength of the aboriginals as they remain happy through tough times. The film portrays aspects of indigenous culture that are of bliss to them; aspects that bring happiness into the disparity of the film. The opening credits show aboriginal children playing in the sand, laughing as they make paw prints with their fingers. It is the simplicity of the act and how much joy it brings that caught my eye, and it …show more content…
While this film does a tremendous job making an interesting story out of the poverty-stricken community, it also brings the real issues into a global spotlight. Unemployment and poverty are amongst the many issues faced by aboriginals today, both of which are portrayed in the movie. Although the film was made in 2010, it represents many issues that have been around since the late 1990’s and still preside up into 2015. In fact, poverty amongst Indigenous Australians is at an all time high, as 19.3% of Aboriginals live below the poverty line (4). In addition, unemployment correlates with poverty, and over 21% of able bodies aboriginals are unemployed (4). To put that into perspective, aboriginals are four times more likely to be unemployed than a non-indigenous Australian, who’s unemployment sits at about 5.7% (4). When determining why indigenous Australians are so much more likely to be impoverished, one cannot help but take into account the years of torment they have endeavored. Aboriginals have faced over 200 years of social, economical, physical, physiological and emotional problems (6), such as the Stolen Generations, race infused political injustices, and a variety of social issues, also revolving around race. Australia has been harder on indigenous citizens than any other race; Take Olympic runner Cathy Freeman for example. Cathy was placed under horrific stress to place Gold in the 2000 Olympics, because she