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The Far Paradise

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The Far Paradise
Directed byPaulette McDonagh
Written byPaulette McDonagh
Produced byPaulette McDonagh
StarringMarie Lorraine
Gaston Mervale
CinematographyJack Fletcher
Production
company
MCD Productions
Distributed byBritish Dominion Films (Aust)
Universal Pictures (UK)
Release dates
  • 14 July 1928 (1928-07-14)
  • 1930 (1930) (UK)
Running time
85 minutes (7,000 feet)
CountryAustralia
Budget£2,000[1][2]

The Far Paradise is a 1928 Australian silent film directed by Paulette McDonagh and starring Marie Lorraine the stage name of Isabel McDonagh. This is the second feature from the McDonagh sisters.[3]

Graham Shirley in Australian Cinema commented: "...one of the best-directed of all Australian features prior to the coming of sound."

Plot

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In the town of Kirkton, James Carson is involved in crime and is investigated by the Attorney-General, Howard Lawton. Carson's daughter Cherry falls in love with Lawton's son Peter, and Lawton forbids the relationship. James Carson goes into hiding, taking Cherry with him.

A year later Peter finds Cherry selling flowers in a mountain tourist resort, trying to support her now-alcoholic father. Carson dies of a heart attack and Cherry can marry Peter.

Cast

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Production

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The death of the McDonaghs' father left them £500 in debt after their first film. However a rich uncle of theirs died in Chile, enabling them to start a second movie.[4]

Shooting began in March 1928.[5] The film's interiors were shot at the McDonagh family home, Drummoyne House, Sydney, and the exteriors in the Burragorang Valley and the Bondi studios of Australasian Films, plus some shots done in Melbourne.[6]

Reception

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The film was well reviewed and performed strongly at the box office.[7]

According to Everyone's it was one of the more successful Australian films of 1928 and made a profit.[2]

References

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  1. ^ "FOOTLIGHTS and Film Flickers". Western Mail. Perth: National Library of Australia. 8 November 1928. p. 7. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  2. ^ a b "Australian Production Budget Drops Ninety Thousand Pounds This Year.", Everyones., 9 (459 (12 December 1928)), nla.obj-590190846, retrieved 7 March 2024 – via Trove
  3. ^ "New Australian Pam". The Argus. Melbourne: National Library of Australia. 21 April 1928. p. 19. Retrieved 2 June 2012.
  4. ^ Ross Cooper, "The McDonagh Sisters", Cinema Papers, July 1974 p261
  5. ^ "FEMINIST CLUB". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 14 March 1928. p. 9. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  6. ^ "FOOTLIGHTS and FILM FLICKERS". Western Mail. Perth: National Library of Australia. 14 June 1928. p. 12. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  7. ^ ""THE FAR PARADISE."". The Sydney Morning Herald. National Library of Australia. 20 June 1928. p. 12. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  • Murray, Scott, ed. (1994). Australian Cinema. St.Leonards, NSW: Allen & Unwin/AFC. p. 21. ISBN 1-86373-311-6.

Notes

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  • The Far Paradise at the NSFA
  • The Argus, Melbourne, Saturday 21 April 1928.
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