MED231 Australian Cinema
Assignment 2
Dags (1998)
Because everyone looks good in a tracksuit.
Produced, Written & Directed by Murray Fahey
- Plot -
"Dag" is an Australian term for filthy wool on the hindquarters of a sheep. It also is a slang term for an uncouth person. Therefore this film is a look at several uncouth individuals. The men are all beer drinkers and dopers who wear Hawaiian shirts, long socks, and sandals. The women are all in tank tops and hot pants and constantly after sex, but never enjoy it. One of the men (Daniel Cordeaux) gets a wild idea to get in the Guinness Book of Records by having one of his mates (David Callan) rob his video store every night. During one of these robberies, the robber "kidnaps" a customer (Tanya Bulmer) and begins a romance. Meanwhile all of the other "dags" are sleeping with one another behind each other's backs.
- Cast & Crew -
Tanya Bulmer ............................... Cheryl
David Callan ................................. Trevor
Sheena Crouch .............................. Tina
Daniel Cordeaux ............................ Kevin
Penny Cooper ............................... Charlene
Sam Makhoul ................................ Enzo
Rebecca De Unamuno ................... Rosa
Paula Arundell .............................. Tracy
Brian Roberts ............................... Daryl
Angus Sampson ............................ Prozac
Murray Fahey ............................... Miles
Sound by Dean Gawen/Rex Watts
Music by Frank Strangio
Editing by Brian Kavanagh
Production Designs by Andrew Crighton/Kate Walker
Cinematography by Peter Borosh
Executive Producers Victor Syrmis & David Hannay
Production Companies
- Winfalz Investments
- Conventry Films
- New Oz Productions
- Made on a Bank Loan Production
Release Date ... 15 October 1998
Country ... Australia
Running time ... 83 min
- Bibliographical details of reviews -
http://www.urbancinefile.com/home/view.asp?Article_ID=1624
http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0169730/usercomments
- Murray Fahey -
Actor - Filmography:
1. Cubbyhouse (2001) .... Gary the Pest Man
... aka Cubby House, The (2001) (Philippines: English title: bootleg title)
... aka Hellion: The Devil's Playground (2001) (USA: video title)
2. Dags (1998) .... Miles
3. Sex Is a Four Letter Word (1995) .... Pizza Man
4. Get Away, Get Away (1993) .... Rick Carter
5. What the Moon Saw (1990) .... Ali
6.Barracuda (1988) (TV) .... Paul (Photocopy Room)
... aka Rocks, The (1988) (TV) (USA)
7. Slate, Wyn & Me (1987) .... Martin
8. Dead-End Drive In (1986) .... Mickey
... aka Dead End (1986) (USA: short title)
9. I Live with Me Dad (1985) .... Tom
Director - Filmography:
1. Cubbyhouse (2001)
... aka Cubby House, The (2001) (Philippines: English title: bootleg title)
... aka Hellion: The Devil's Playground (2001) (USA: video title)
2. Dags (1998)
3. Sex Is a Four Letter Word (1995)
4. Encounters (1993/I)
... aka Voyage Into Fear (1993) (USA)
5. Get Away, Get Away (1993)
Writer - Filmography:
1. Cubbyhouse (2001)
... aka Cubby House, The (2001) (Philippines: English title: bootleg title)
... aka Hellion: The Devil's Playground (2001) (USA: video title)
2. Dags (1998)
3. Sex Is a Four Letter Word (1995)
4. Encounters (1993/I)
... aka Voyage Into Fear (1993) (USA)
5. Get Away, Get Away (1993)
Producer - Filmography:
1. Change of Heart (1999)
2. Dags (1998)
3. Sex Is a Four Letter Word (1995)
4. Encounters (1993/I)
... aka Voyage Into Fear (1993) (USA)
5. Get Away, Get Away (1993)
Where did I find my resources?
Sadly this film has been released quite some time ago, I met difficulties in searching information almost everywhere. I began my research with watching the film first, rented the video and sat in front of the cube for hours (I was basically watching it again and again and again!) Next, I moved on to another cube. This time is my laptop because I needed to go online and search for information. Surfing the net is no doubt a very good way of digging and searching for information. But too bad, I can't seem to find anything about the film; like I said, this is quite an old film to begin with. Depression slowly crept in and when I was about to give in, some results shown in my laptop! There were not many to count on to, oh well at least better than nothing...
Critical Review & Bibliography
Dags (1998) is the story of how a bunch of Australian teenagers cope with things in their lives also exploring the very exciting experiences of everyday at the same time. Murray Fahey had made this film features some elements of a documentary but did not carry out a documentary's purpose though. The establishing scene of the film is first the map of Australia, then followed by some landscapes, koalas and some other creatures. Accompanied by a male narrator, whom can be seen in the film (but his role is really a narrator), viewers have been introduced to the word "dag". This is one interesting and funny part of the film. Murray Fahey had added in some animated color pictures to explain what "dag" is. For foreign viewers shall find this part amusing.
Next of the scene, a "dag" or "dags" come in more explicitly understood when each and every one of the teenagers introduced themselves. This was done with the style of interview, which is again, similar to a documentary. Also Murray Fahey made this film interested less in showing the heroic individual journey than it is in establishing the mechanism of cause and effect experienced within a group or class of society. Dags (1998) was to show the more important characters like Cheryl (Tanya Bulmer), Trevor (David Callan), Tina (Sheenan Crouch), Kevin (Danial Cordeaux) and Enzo (Sam Makhoul), which were multiple characters within the film.
The story begins with the guys trying very hard to pick up the girls. Enzo and his two other mates, Prozac (Angus Sampson) and Miles (Murray Fahey) were trying their luck to pick up some girls at a bar. After been teased and rejected couple of times, Enzo finally got himself hooked up with Charlene (Penny Cooper). Hence, these teenagers got their lives intervened with each other's. Murray Fahey has done a fairly good job in bringing some social issues/problems, which associated with teenagers, into the film. For instance, Cheryl's boyfriend, Daryl (Brian Roberts) is committed to smoking weed frequently until his car got dismembered and he wasn't aware of that. Cheryl has major problem with her parents and many more.
Another high point of the film is where Cheryl dumped Daryl outside of the local video store, she is immediately taken as hostage during the fake robbery, set up by Kevin and his video store assistant, Trevor. Trevor is to rob Kevin every night in order to get both of them famous. When the local media hear of Cheryl's kidnapping, all three are thrust into the spotlight but end up with more than they bargained for.
Dags (1998) no doubt is a teen movie that central concerns thematic were of great interest to teenagers, and which was made in such a way as to appeal to teenagers. It is both dramatic and comical which work pretty well together to catch teenagers' interest. The film was shot and edited in a dynamic and bouncy way as well. Dags (1998) definitely falls under the category as "teenpics". According to Steve Neale (2000), Hollywood has made "film designed or presumed to cater for what it called 'the juve trade' - juvenile spectators." (p. 119) This film is interesting as it is, full of 'Australianness' which one can see. The unique slang word (like dag), the portrayal of Australia (the landscape), the everyday life in Australia constituted of what it originally is. An Australian film indeed.
Bibliography
Books
Neale, Steve, (2000), 'Major Genres', Chapter 3 of Genre and Hollywood, Routledge, London: 51-149
Electronic Databases
http://www.urbancinefile.com/home/view.asp?Article_ID=1624
http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0169730/usercomments
Reviewed by
Juliana Tyan
Due to LIMITED information and resources, it is so unfortunate (for me) to really present you every single details that you need to know about this film. There are numbers of questions which the answers cannot be found or unavailable.