This timeline presents summaries about films produced in Australia where criminal offending or criminal justice were important elements. Where they are available, clips from the films are also presented. The timeline testifies to the importance of crime in the Australian popular imagination, demonstrating how it dominated Australia’s vibrant early film-making culture in particular.
Learning Activity
Having reviewed the film descriptions and watched the clips, reflect upon the following questions:
- In terms of the number of crime films produced in any given decade, did you get a sense of high and low points in the production of such films in Australian history?
- What sort of genres are in evidence (e.g. mysteries, police procedurals, thrillers, noirs, heist films, period films, dramas, comedies)?
- Does the popularity of some genres change over time?
- What are the major themes, tropes or plotlines that appear in Australian film culture?
- To what extent do these tropes remain present across different periods?
- What types of attitudes about crime and criminal offending do you believe the films suggest have historically been common in Australia?
- Based on your knowledge of the film cultures of other countries, what do you believe is distinctive about Australian portrayals of crime?
Further Resources
The National Film and Sound Archive offer information about and clips from a number of crime films.