| The Life and Adventures of John Vane, the Notorious Australian Bushranger | |
| Director: | S.A.Fitzgerald |
| Producer: | Charles Cozens Spencer |
| Based On: | John Vane, Bushranger Ed. by Charles White |
| Starring: | Jim Gerald Raymond Longford |
| Cinematography: | Ernest Higgins |
| Editing: | Ernest Higgins |
| Studio: | Cozens Spencer's Theatrescope Company |
| Distributor: | E.J. Carroll (Queensland) |
| Country: | Australia |
| Language: | Silent English intertitles |
The Life and Adventures of John Vane, the Notorious Australian Bushranger is a 1910 Australian silent film about the bushranger John Vane, who was a member of Ben Hall's gang. It was the first dramatic film from Charles Cozens Spencer who was a key producer of early Australian movies.
It is considered a lost film.
The film starts with John Vane accepting a wager that he wouldn't bail up a Chinese man. Then Vane wins his bet by robbing a Chinese man, leading to headlines which say "Robbery Under Arms by John Vane" and Vane fleeing to the bush with his sweetheart. Later adventures include his capture and release of his sweetheart; the sticking up of the Keightley Homestead; the shooting of Michael Burke, which leads to Vane joining the Ben Hall gang; Vane's change of heart and surrender to Father McCarthy. He serves fifteen years in prison and after release retires comfortably.[1]
The chapter headings were:[2] [3]
According to a contemporary report "the comic element is not forgotten, for the scene in which Vane is shown bailing up a Chinaman and discovers the booty hidden in the horse's tail, and the various intercits of the Celestial to avoid detection of the plant are not without their humorous side. Most attention however, is paid to the sensational."[4]
John Vane was the last surviving member of Ben Hall's gang. His memoirs had been published posthumously in 1908.[5] [6]
It was the first dramatic film from Charles Cozens Spencer who had established a production unit in June 1908 which made newsreels and scenic short films. This unit was headed by Ernest Higgins who shot John Vane. Raymond Longford reportedly features in a lead role.[7]
The film was reportedly shot at Brookvale and Manly in Sydney.[8] According to The Bulletin:
Brookvale, along the ocean past Manly, figures largely in Spencer’s film of “John Vane, Bushranger,” pictured not so long ago, wherein the feminine “comic relief ” is pantomimed by Miss Watts-Phillips, who “gives way” under the influence of a loaded revolver held at her head by the hero-villain, a thing most of us would be guilty of in the same circumstances.
The film was advertised as "Our Own Production".[9]
The critic from the Argus praised the "splendid backgrounds of the sunny New South Wales bush" and said the movie compares "very favourably with the best foreign films".[1]
The Evening News called it "a first-class piece of photographic art".[10]
Table Talk wrote, the film "is depicted in a wonderfully-realistic manner, .What makes this particular picture doubly interesting is that the work is all Australian, Australian artists who know the bush; most of them fine horsemen, have been fitted, into glimpses of the sketches of grand and' wild Australian scenery, and the resultis a refreshing, wholesome drama of Australian early history."[11]
The Sydney Morning Herald wrote "for scenes of wild excitement and daring [the film ] leaves nothing to be desired."[12] The Daily Telegraph said "The story is of purely Australian interest and coloring, and is worked out Dy capital pnotograpny, skilful selection of incidents, and uncommonly clear production."[13]
The Herald called it "a credit to all concerned... the story is excellent."[14]
Box office response was popular throughout Australia.[15] The Lithgow Mercury said " it caused a sensation" on its initial release at the Lyceum in Sydney.[16] The Sydney Morning Herald said the film was held on at that cinema "owing to its popularity."[17]
Although Spencer was purportedly dissatisfied with the final product,[18] he went on to become a notable backer of early Australian movie production.[19]