British distributors Eureka Entertainment have announced the release of
Wake in Fright, the legendary, long-sought-after Australian film, released theatrically at the BFI Southbank and cinemas nationwide in the UK & Eire and for the first time on home video in the UK. The Blu-ray release date is March 31, 2014.
Directed by Ted Kotcheff, who later directed
First Blood, the first Rambo film,
Wake in Fright was the first film to have been screened at the Cannes Film Festival twice, first in 1971, the second time in 2009. This startling Australian companion to
Straw Dogs and
Deliverance, has been screened across the UK film festival circuit in 2013 and, following a UK & Eire theatrical release on 7 March 2014, will be released in a Dual Format (Blu-ray & DVD) edition as part of Eureka Entertainment's Masters of Cinema Series on March 31, 2014.
Wake in Fright is based on the 1961 novel by Kenneth Cook. It was first released under the title Outback, describing the film's arid, sweltering, wasteland setting of Bundanyabba ("The Yabba"), an earthy mining town where schoolteacher John Grant (Bond) descends into a living hell when he is stranded on his way to meet his girlfriend in Sydney. Struggling to escape a men-gone-wild nihilistic world of binge drinking, habitual gambling, and senseless violence, Grant plunges headlong towards his own destruction, joined for the ride by alcoholic doctor "Doc" Tydon (Pleasance).
Special Features:
- New high-definition 1080p presentation of the film, from the 2009 restoration
- Audio commentary with director Ted Kotcheff and editor Anthony Buckley
- A selection of video pieces, including new interviews and rare behind-the-scenes footage
- Original US Outback TV spot
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hearing-impaired
- PLUS: A booklet featuring writing on the film, its restoration, rare imagery, and more!