Australia has always been a proud sporting nation, so it always came as a surprise to there has never been a definitive Australian sports film. The Great Macarthy was one of the first -and worst- attempts at creating the quintessential Aussie sports flick. The game in play here is Aussie Rules football, a uniquely Australian sport which has a large following.
John Jarrett (in his screen debut) plays Macarthy, a young football prodigy in his home town of Kyenton. After a match, he is kidnapped by the South Melbourne Swans football club, who set him up with a job and a new residence. Despite having a successful career as a footballer, Macarthy is having trouble in the romance department, going through a succession of women before falling in love with Miss Russell (Judy Morris), a woman of fine culture who changes Macarthy's perspective on life. His new change in attitude leads to a rivalry with the Swans' owner Col Ball-Miller (Barry Humphries), which almost destroys his career.
The Great Macarthy is a painful film to sit through. Its mix of comedy and drama just does not work, especially since its comedic moments are not funny, and its dramatic moments are excruciatingly boring. The plot jumps from one ridiculous situation to another, and the shoddy editing by John Scott does not make for an easy flowing viewing experience.
A poorly written script is brought to life by David Baker's inept direction, and even worse performances. A young John Jarrett - who is on screen for 99% of the time - is a dull presence, so much that I could care less what happens to his character.
The humour on hand is the usual type of crude, Aussie larrikin comedy which seems to have been the norm for that era. This is a shame, since the films source material does seem to have something to say in the way of athlete's being treated like assets and not people. Unfortunately, the lack of talent on hand just cannot drive that message home.