This 96%-Rated Overlooked Thriller Deeply Disturbed Martin Scorsese: "Left Me Speechless"
It's a universal parable that cannot be dismissed.
In 1971, a film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival that left one of the greatest directors of our time speechless.
Martin Scorsese, a young filmmaker at the time, walked out of a screening of Ted Kotcheff's Wake in Fright in a state of disarray.
Martin Scorsese Says 'Wake in Fright' Left Him Speechless
Wake in Fright miraculously escaped destruction and sat on a shelf for 38 years. It turned out to be not only a forgotten masterpiece but also a timeless statement on the nature of masculinity, violence, and social oppression.
In 2009, when he presented the restored version of the film at Cannes, Scorsese made no secret of his admiration:
“[It is]a deeply – and I mean deeply – unsettling and disturbing movie. I saw it when it premiered at Cannes in 1971 and it left me speechless.”
What Is 'Wake in Fright' About?
John Grant, a schoolteacher from the Australian outback, finally gets his long-awaited vacation and heads to Sydney. En route, he stops in the small town of Bundanyabba for just one night.
That night turns into a living nightmare. The locals live by the unwritten rules of male brotherhood and drag Grant into endless drinking, gambling, fighting, and finally, a brutal kangaroo hunt.
Refusing a drink is perceived as a personal insult and an invitation to violence.
'Wake in Fright' Is As Relevant Today As It Was Half a Century Ago
Wake in Fright is often cited as a critique of Australian masculinity – and rightly so. Kotcheff mercilessly dissects the cult of alcohol and strength – in closed communities, these become the only means of socialization.
However, the movie also addresses more universal topics: how the majority easily suppresses the individual, how quickly the moral compass crumbles under group pressure, and how the fear of being an outcast can drive people to commit monstrous acts.
The scenes of the kangaroo hunt are filmed so graphically that they still evoke physical revulsion, but this is not exploitation, it is a deliberate artistic technique. Kotcheff shows that violence against animals and violence against people stem from the same root.
Half a century later, as the world once again discusses toxic masculinity and the dangers of closed communities, Wake in Fright resonates more than ever.
What Did Critics & Viewers Think of 'Wake in Fright'?
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Wake in Fright has 96% from critics and 83% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes.
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On IMDb, the movie has a score of 7.5/10.
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On Letterboxd, Wake in Fright scored 4.0/5.0.
Where to Watch 'Wake in Fright'?
Wake in Fright is available to stream on Shudder.
