''The Real Macaw'' is a 1998 Australian adventure film written by Bruce Hancock and Matthew Perry and directed by

Mario Andreacchio Mario Andreacchio (born 1 January 1955) is an Australian film producer/director. Born in Leigh Creek, South Australia to Italians, Italian parents, Andreacchio graduated from Flinders University with a degree in Psychology (after originally go ...

. It was produced and distributed by

Becker Entertainment Becker Entertainment is an Australian production company. History The company was founded in 1965 as R.A. Becker by Russell Becker, one of the pioneers of commercial television in Australia. Becker was Australia's first independent distributor ...

, and filmed on location in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The film was released on 24 September 1998 and released on VHS on 11 July 2000 by

Paramount Home Video Paramount Home Entertainment (formerly Paramount Home Media Distribution, and originally Paramount Home Video) is the home video distribution arm of Paramount Pictures, a division of Paramount Global. The division oversees PPC's home entertainme ...

. It stars

Jason Robards Jason Nelson Robards Jr. (July 26, 1922 – December 26, 2000) was an American actor. Known as an interpreter of the works of playwright Eugene O'Neill, Robards received two Academy Awards, a Tony Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and the Cannes ...

as Grandpa Girdis and

John Goodman John Stephen Goodman (born June 20, 1952) is an American actor. He gained national fame for his role as the family patriarch Dan Conner in the American Broadcasting Company, ABC comedy series ''Roseanne'' (1988–1997; 2018), for which he rec ...

as the voice of Mac.

Plot

Mac, an ancient blue and gold macaw, becomes the saving grace for an elderly man threatened with a nursing home when it is discovered that the talking bird knows the whereabouts of a buried treasure from its days with a pirate. The man's grandson decides to go off on the hunt only to discover that a resort now exists where the treasure is buried.

Cast

* Jamie Croft as Sam Girdis *

Deborra-Lee Furness Deborra-Lee Furness (born 30 November 1955) is an Australian actress and producer. She is married to actor Hugh Jackman. Early life Furness was born in Annandale, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, and raised in Melbourne, Victoria. At ...

as Beth Girdis * Joe Petruzzi as Rick Girdis *

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 transgressive cult films, including '' Multiple Maniacs'' (1970), '' Pink Flamingos'' (1972) and '' Fe ...

as Dr. Lance Hagen *

as Grandpa Girdis *

as Mac the Parrot (American Version) *

Gerry Connolly Gerald Edward Connolly (born March 30, 1950) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Virginia's 11th congressional district, first elected in 2008. The district is anchored in Fairfax County, an affluent suburban coun ...

as Lou Rickets *

Robert Coleby Robert Coleby (born 1947) is a British actor who has spent most of his career in Australia. Active since the 1970s, he has over 70 film and television credits to his name. Coleby has acted on stage in numerous productions for the Queensland The ...

as Mr. St. John *

Petra Yared Petra Georgina Yared (born 18 January 1979) is an Australian actress. She has also been credited as Petra Jared. Early life Yared was born in Melbourne to Rick and Shelley, having an older sister, Sara, and younger brother, Nicholas. Yared is ...

as Kathy Girdis * Nathan Kotzur as Scarlatta * Kevin Hides as Business Man on Plane * Penny Everingham as Nurse Gimlet * Murray Shoring as Dr. Thompson * Daniel Murphy as Pet Store Owner/Mac the Parrot (Australian Version) * Anna-Maria La Spina as Museum Receptionist

Box office

''The Real Macaw'' grossed $741,876 at the box office in Australia.

Reception

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

''The Real Macaw'' has two reviews listed: one positive; one negative.

Accolades

References

External links

The Real Macaw
at Oz Movies Australian adventure films 1998 films 1990s adventure films 1990s children's adventure films Parrots Films scored by Bill Conti Films about birds Treasure hunt films Films directed by Mario Andreacchio 1990s English-language films 1990s Australian films {{adventure-film-stub