''Bad Blood'' is a 1981 British-New Zealand

thriller film Thriller film, also known as suspense film or suspense thriller, is a broad film genre that evokes excitement and suspense in the audience. The suspense element found in most films' plots is particularly exploited by the filmmaker in this genre ...

set during World War II in the small town of Koiterangi (now '' Kowhitirangi'') on the

west coast West Coast or west coast may refer to: Geography Australia * Western Australia *Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia * West Coast, Tasmania **West Coast Range, mountain range in the region Canada * Britis ...

of the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

of New Zealand, and is based on the factual manhunt for mass-murderer

Stanley Graham Eric Stanley George Graham (12 November 1900 – 21 October 1941) was a New Zealander who killed seven people. Early life Graham was born and raised in Kokatahi, New Zealand and, as a child, worked at the Longford Hotel, built in 1902, ten ...

. The film was directed by English director Mike Newell, who went on to direct ''

Four Weddings and a Funeral ''Four Weddings and a Funeral'' is a 1994 British romantic comedy film directed by Mike Newell. It is the first of several films by screenwriter Richard Curtis to feature Hugh Grant, and follows the adventures of Charles (Grant) and his circle ...

''. Much of the film was shot at the original locations. The script was based upon ''Manhunt: The Story of Stanley Graham'', by

H. A. Willis H.A. Willis, (born Howard Alan Willis on 15 November 1948), is an Australian essayist, novelist, critic and editor. Early life The son of a Lands Department inspector in Victoria, Willis was born at Colac and grew up at Apollo Bay, Kyneton an ...

(Whitcoulls, 1979) and adapted by New Zealand-born Andrew Brown.

Plot

In October 1941 Stan Graham, a Westland

smallholder A smallholding or smallholder is a small farm operating under a small-scale agriculture model. Definitions vary widely for what constitutes a smallholder or small-scale farm, including factors such as size, food production technique or technology ...

, develops a persecution complex and starts to threaten his neighbours, in which he is encouraged by his wife. He then refuses to conform to a government order for all citizens to surrender their firearms for the duration of the war. Eventually a party of four policemen arrive to confiscate his firearms, which causes a flashpoint for Graham. With the help of his wife who shoots and injures one of them, Graham shoots and kills all the policemen and, in the ensuing altercations, three locals also. Shot and injured himself, Graham then heads into the surrounding forest. A manhunt is organised, involving police, army and local home guard members, and finally they track him down.

Cast

Jack Thompson Jack Thompson may refer to: Sports *Jack Thompson (footballer, born 1892) (1892–1969), English footballer who played for Sheffield United and Bristol City *Jack Thompson (1920s footballer), English footballer who played for Aston Villa and Bright ...

Carol Burns Carol Ann Burns (29 October 1947 – 22 December 2015) was an Australian actress, theatre director and patron of the arts, with a career spanning 50 years. She worked extensively in theatre and television serials, as well as telemovies and min ...

as Dorothy Graham *

Denis Lill Denis Lill (born 22 April 1942) is a New Zealand-born British actor. He is best known for his roles in '' Survivors'' as Charles Vaughan, ''Only Fools and Horses'' as Alan Parry, ''Outside Edge'' as Dennis Broadley and as Consultant General Sur ...

as Ted Best *

Martyn Sanderson Martyn Sanderson (24 February 1938 – 14 October 2009) was a New Zealand actor, director, producer, writer and poet. Sanderson was described as one of the founding fathers of modern theatre in New Zealand. In New Zealand he had appearances ...

as Les North * Kelly Johnson as Jim Quirke *

Bruce Allpress Bruce Robert Allpress (25 August 1930 – 23 April 2020) was a New Zealand actor. Biography Allpress grew up in Dunedin, the second son of William and Gladys Allpress. He began performing in the 1960s in a vaudeville minstrel show called the Che ...

as Inspector Calwell * Ken Blackburn as Thommo Robson *

Cliff Wood In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on coa ...

as Henry Growcott * Dulcie Smart as Evelyn Gibson *

Miranda Harcourt Miranda Catherine Millais Harcourt (born 1962) is a New Zealand actress and acting coach. Harcourt's acting career began playing boy characters on Radio New Zealand in the early 1970s. She is best known for her role as Gemma in the 1980s TV dr ...

as Ivy Smith * Peter Vere Jones as Mr Ogier

Release

''Bad Blood'' was originally made for TV and screened in Britain in 1981. It was released in New Zealand on 12 November 1982. It was released on DVD in May 2006 and again on 16 September 2009. It was also released in the United Kingdom and in North America on 2 October 2007.

Reception

''Bad Blood'' received rave reviews in Britain and later in New Zealand. Although considered risky when released, ''Bad Blood'' is now regarded as a New Zealand film classic.

References

External links

Crime NZ: Stanley Graham Murders

Interview with Jack Thompson

1981 films 1980s thriller drama films 1980s English-language films British thriller drama films New Zealand thriller drama films Films directed by Mike Newell Films set in 1941 1981 drama films 1980s British films {{1980s-UK-film-stub