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Looking
at Tim today, it is actually surprising to see Mel Gibson’s name appearing
in the credits after the top-billed imported American star, Piper
Laurie.
Tim
tells the story of the relationship between an older woman (played by
Laurie) and a younger, developmentally disabled man (played by Gibson).
Their developing friendship ultimately turns to love leading up to and
after the death of Tim’s parents.
In fact, one of the real
pleasures of this film is watching the performances of the two actors,
Alwyn Kurts and Pat Evison, playing Tim’s parents. Their down-to-earth
approach to life and their unflinching love of their mildly disabled
son is magic to watch!
The success of their roles was
rewarded at the time when they won AFI awards for Best Supporting Actor
and Actress (along with Gibson’s award as Best Actor).
A particular
highlight comes in the form of a scene where Tim’s parents meet the
parents of their daughter’s fiance for the first time and, later, the
touching moment when the father admits that he just wants to die so he
can lay down next to his deceased wife.
Mel Gibson himself is young and fresh-faced in Tim
and he plays his quiet, unassuming and child-like character to
perfection. His wardrobe of tiny 1970-style shorts and work boots
certainly impressed female audiences in the late 1970s and the movie
was moderately successful in Australia when it was first released.
Michael
Pate’s direction is noteworthy, especially the way he handled the love
scene between Gibson and Laurie which was very subtle and without
dialogue.
The movie is closely based on the novel by Colleen
McCullough. Watch for the scene when Piper Laurie is shown reading
McCullough’s other well known novel, “The Thorn Birds”! EXTRAS
There is a short introduction to the film by Pate’s son, Christopher.
The
main DVD Special Feature however is an 18-minute interview with Michael
Pate (who passed away in September 2008) during which he provides some
background on the making of the film.
Snippets of information
include the fact that Julie Harris was originally slated to play the
older woman and his son, Christopher, was considered for the role
ultimately taken by Gibson. The trouble with the editing of this
interview though is that it is almost exclusively (and I suppose
understandably) about Mel Gibson with the result that it gets a bit
repetitive after the first 10 minutes.
There are also some trailers for other upcoming Umbrella releases. Conclusion: Episodes 90% Extras: 70%
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