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Murphy of Anzac

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Murphy of Anzac
Sydney Sun 9 April 1916
Directed byJ. E. Mathews[2]
Written byArchie Fraser[3]
StarringMartyn Keith
Production
company
Release date
  • 24 April 1916 (1916-04-24)[1]
Running time
4,000 feet[4] or four reels[5]
CountryAustralia
LanguagesSilent film
English intertitles

Murphy of Anzac is a 1916 Australian silent film directed by J. E. Mathews. It tells the story of John Simpson Kirkpatrick during the Gallipoli campaign in World War I.[6] It is considered a lost film.[7]

Plot

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John Simpson Kirkpatrick, aka "Murphy", an English emigrant to Queensland, enlists in the army in World War I and is attached to the ambulance corps. On the voyage over he discovers a traitor (Martyn Keith) giving information to the enemy by wireless and overcomes him. The Australian troops land at Gallipoli and Murphy brings the wounded back from the trenches on his donkey. He is killed by a Turkish shell while rescuing his 104th man.[8][9]

A highlight of the film was the German spy being thrown off a cliff 50 foot into the water.[10]

Cast

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  • Martyn Keith as spy[11]

Production

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The film was announced in March 1916.[12][13] It was financed by Fraser Films, leading distributors at the time who occasionally invested in productions.[14][15]

The cast was largely returned servicemen.[16][17] The technical adviser was Gallipoli veteran Corporal Robson, who had known Simpson, and who also appeared in the film.[7][18][19]

Reception

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An article from April 1915 said the film was "drawing crowded houses" in Sydney.[20]

The film ran for six weeks in Sydney and nine weeks in Melbourne.[21] It was screening in cinemas as late as 1920.[22]

The Adelaide Mail wrote "The transport scenes are particulariy exciting, especially when a German spy is hurled into the water, a distance of 50 ft."[23] The Sun said it "was well handled by those responsible for its production."[24]

Historical accuracy

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The film was criticised at the time by Gallipoli veterans for a number of historical errors including showing:

  • Murphy being allotted to the AMC when he was with the Ninth Division;
  • Murphy's mother in Australia, when she never left England;
  • Murphy killed by a shell when he was really killed by machine gun fire;[25]
  • Murphy receiving a white feather, when no such thing happened.[22][26]

Trivia

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In 1919 a returned serviceman called Bailey was found murdered. He was thought to be a owner of a physical copy of the film.[27]

References

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  1. ^ "Advertising". The Mail. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 22 April 1916. p. 6. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  2. ^ "PRODUCTION OF MOVING PICTURES-- IN AMERICA AND AUSTRALIA". Australian Town and Country Journal. Vol. XCVIII, no. 2555. New South Wales, Australia. 18 December 1918. p. 20. Retrieved 21 November 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ^ "HERBERT'S PICTURES". Newcastle Morning Herald And Miners' Advocate. No. 12, 948. New South Wales, Australia. 2 May 1916. p. 6. Retrieved 18 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ "TRIUMPH PICTURES". Queanbeyan Age and Queanbeyan Observer. NSW: National Library of Australia. 8 August 1916. p. 2. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  5. ^ "Burlington Pictures". National Advocate. New South Wales, Australia. 13 May 1916. p. 2. Retrieved 18 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ^ "MURPHY OF ANZAC". The Cairns Post. Qld.: National Library of Australia. 30 January 1919. p. 2. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  7. ^ a b Andrew Pike and Ross Cooper, Australian Film 1900–1977: A Guide to Feature Film Production, Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1998, p 62
  8. ^ "AMUSEMENTS". The Register. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 3 May 1916. p. 3. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  9. ^ "ENTERTAINMENTS". The Brisbane Courier. National Library of Australia. 10 December 1917. p. 5. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  10. ^ "MURPHY OF ANZAC". The Mail. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 22 April 1916. p. 6. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  11. ^ "Notes from the Picture Sitows". The Sun. No. 704. New South Wales, Australia. 24 September 1916. p. 20. Retrieved 18 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  12. ^ "MURPHY OF ANZAC". The Sun. No. 675. New South Wales, Australia. 5 March 1916. p. 22 (SUNDAY EDITION). Retrieved 18 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  13. ^ "SUNDRY SHOWS.", The Bulletin., Sydney, N.S.W: John Haynes and J.F. Archibald, 9 March 1916, nla.obj-693719320, retrieved 18 July 2024 – via Trove
  14. ^ "From Magic to Motion Pictures.", Everyones., Sydney: Everyones Ltd, 21 September 1921, nla.obj-557005999, retrieved 18 July 2024 – via Trove
  15. ^ "DARDANELLES FILMS". The Sun. No. 676. New South Wales, Australia. 12 March 1916. p. 22 (SUNDAY EDITION). Retrieved 18 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  16. ^ ""Murphy, of Anzac."". The Register. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 29 April 1916. p. 10. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  17. ^ "BUSINESS IS BUSINESS". The Sun. No. 677. New South Wales, Australia. 19 March 1916. p. 22. Retrieved 18 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  18. ^ "Foyle's Empress Pavilion". Williamstown Chronicle. Vic.: National Library of Australia. 17 June 1916. p. 2. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  19. ^ "ALFORD'S PICTURES". The North Western Advocate and the Emu Bay Times. Tas.: National Library of Australia. 1 March 1917. p. 2. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  20. ^ "STAR PROGRAMMES AT WADDINGON'S". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 24, 434. New South Wales, Australia. 29 April 1916. p. 20. Retrieved 18 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  21. ^ "AMUSEMENTS". The Mercury. Hobart, Tas.: National Library of Australia. 19 February 1917. p. 8. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  22. ^ a b "MURPHY OF ANZAC". The Cairns Post. Qld.: National Library of Australia. 17 February 1920. p. 8. Retrieved 14 June 2012.
  23. ^ "MURPHY OF ANZAC". The Mail (Adelaide). Vol. 3, no. 206. South Australia. 22 April 1916. p. 6. Retrieved 18 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  24. ^ "What The Press Agents Say". The Sun. No. 686. New South Wales, Australia. 21 May 1916. p. 20. Retrieved 18 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  25. ^ "Private John Simpson Kirkpatrick". www.awm.gov.au. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
  26. ^ ""MURPHY, OF ANZAC"". The Grafton Argus And Clarence River General Advertiser. New South Wales, Australia. 26 April 1920. p. 2. Retrieved 18 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
  27. ^ "MURPHY OF ANZAC". The Daily Telegraph. No. 12602. New South Wales, Australia. 2 October 1919. p. 4. Retrieved 14 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
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