''End Play'' is a 1976

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Au ...

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 ...

directed by

Tim Burstall Timothy Burstall AM (20 April 1927 – 19 April 2004) was an English Australian film director, writer and producer, best known for hit Australian movie ''Alvin Purple'' (1973) and its sequel ''Alvin Rides Again''. Burstall's films featured ea ...

and starring George Mallaby,

John Waters John Samuel Waters Jr. (born April 22, 1946) is an American filmmaker, writer, actor, and artist. He rose to fame in the early 1970s for his Cinema of Transgression, transgressive cult films, including ''Multiple Maniacs'' (1970), ''Pink Flamin ...

and

Ken Goodlet Kenneth Edwin Goodlet (11 October 1921- 15 November 2006) was an Australian actor with extensive credits in film, radio, TV and theatre, known for Ned Kelly (1970), Bluey (1976) and The Long Arm (1970). Select Credits *'' One Morning Near Troo ...

. It was an adaptation of the 1972 novel ''End Play'' by

Russell Braddon Russell Reading Braddon (25 January 1921 – 20 March 1995) was an Australian writer of novels, biographies and TV scripts. His chronicle of his four years as a prisoner of war, '' The Naked Island'', sold more than a million copies. Braddon ...

. It was made by

Hexagon Productions Hexagon Productions was an Australian film production company established in 1972 by Roadshow Distributors with Tim Burstall and Associates and the company Bilcock and Copping. All parties had successfully collaborated on ''Stork'' (1971) and wante ...

.Moran & Veith p. 78

Plot

Hitchhiker Janine Talbort is picked up and murdered by an unseen assailant. Mark Gifford, a merchant sailor on leave, then disposes of the body, attracting the suspicion of his wheelchair-using brother Robert. The police become suspicious of both brothers, who are rivals over their half-cousin, Margaret.

Cast

* George Mallaby - Robert Gifford *

- Mark Gifford *

- Superintendent Cheadle *

Delvene Delaney Delvene Delaney (born 26 August 1951) is an Australian actress of soap opera and film, television presenter and singer. Career Delaney was born in Mackay, Queensland, Australia, on 26 August 1951, the beauty pageant winner found fame on Austra ...

- Janine Talbort *

Charles Tingwell Charles William Tingwell Member of the Order of Australia, AM (3 January 1923 – 15 May 2009), known professionally as Bud Tingwell or Charles 'Bud' Tingwell, was an Australian film, television, theatre and radio actor. One of the veterans of ...

- Doctor Fairburn *

Belinda Giblin Sue Belinda Giblin (born 2 March 1950) professionally billed as Belinda Giblin, is an Australian actress. Prominent in theatre and television soap operas, and several feature films. Giblin's small screen roles include '' The Box'' as Kay Webst ...

- Margaret Gifford *

Robert Hewett The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

- Sergeant Robinson *

Kevin Miles Kevin Miles (born 17 April 1929) is an Australian retired actor of theatre and television best known for his role as Godfrey Carson in the Australian television legal drama ''Carson's Law''. Miles also appeared in '' Delta'' (1969), ''Dynas ...

- Charlie Bricknall * Walter Pym - Stanley Lipton *

Sheila Florance Sheila Mary Florance (24 July 1916 – 12 October 1991) was an Australian theatre, television and film actress. She was best known for her performance as elderly, alcoholic convict Lizzie Birdsworth in the television series ''Prisoner''. F ...

- Mavis Lipton *

Reg Gorman Reg Gorman (2 August 1932 – 5 August 2021) was an Australian television and film actor, and comedian, he was known best for his role in TV serial ''The Sullivans'', as Jack Fletcher. and children's series ''Fergus McPhail'' as Harry Patters ...

- TV Reporter *

Adrian Wright Adrian Wright (1 July 1947 – 28 November 2015) was English Australian actor remembered for his roles in the 1970s children's television series ''Freewheelers'' and the Australian serial ''Prisoner (TV series), Prisoner'' in which he played ma ...

- Andrew Gifford * Jan Friedl - Policewoman *

Vicki Raymond Vicky, Vicko, Vick, Vickie or Vicki is a feminine given name, often a hypocorism of Victoria. The feminine name Vicky in Greece comes from the name Vasiliki. Women * Family nickname of Victoria, Princess Royal (1840–1901), wife of German ...

- Robbie's Mother *

Elspeth Ballantyne Elspeth Ballantyne (born 20 April 1939) is an Australian retired actress, who appeared in productions in theatre, television and films over a career that spanned nearly 60 years, a veteran of the industry having started her career as a child ...

- Welfare Officer *

Terry Gill Terry Gill (25 October 1939 – 25 February 2015) was an English Australian actor, theatre owner, producer, director and writer. A character actor, he carved a niche in Australian television playing police officers. He appeared in over 26 Austral ...

- Ticket Collector

Production

Russell Braddon's novel was originally set in England but was relocated to Australia.Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, ''Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production'', Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998, p 297 Burstall made the film as part of a deliberate effort to move away from "ocker material". He was attracted to Braddon's novel because it would be simple to film as it was basically a two hander, while also preparing ''

Eliza Fraser Eliza Anne Fraser (c.1798 – 1858) was a Scottish woman who was aboard a ship that wrecked at an island off the coast of Queensland, Australia, on 22 May 1836, and who claimed she was taken in by the Bidjara language, Badtjala (Butchella) people ...

'' (1976). The movie was budgeted at $244,000 but eventually cost $294,000.Scott Murray, 'Tim Burstall', ''Cinema Papers'' Sept-Oct 1979 p495, 576 Shooting commenced in January 1975. The two leads, George Mallaby and John Waters, were familiar faces on Australian television at the time.David Stratton, ''The Last New Wave: The Australian Film Revival'', Angus & Robertson, 1980 p34

Reception

The film performed reasonably at the box-office and in 1979 reported that it had just broken even. It also rated highly on television, the rights for which earned Hexagon $70,000. Burstall admitted the film might have been more effective as a TV movie, but says it would have been harder to make a profit that way. The film is rated M in New Zealand for violence and cruelty.

References

Bibliography

* Moran, Albert & Viethm, Errol. ''Historical Dictionary of Australian and New Zealand Cinema''. Scarecrow Press, 2005.

External links

*
''End Play''
at Oz Movies 1976 films Australian thriller films Films directed by Tim Burstall Films scored by Peter Best (composer) Films based on Australian novels Films set in Australia 1970s English-language films 1970s Australian films {{1970s-Australia-film-stub