Two Friends (1986) (TV)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Jane Campion

Writer:

Helen Garner (written by)

Release Date:

21 November 1987 (Finland)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Two girls, at 15; Louise, in a prestigious girls' high school, and Kelly, who was admitted but forbidden by her father to attend...

Plot Keywords:

Friendship | Nonlinear Timeline | 80s Teens | Pre Teen

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Kris Bidenko	...	Kelly
Emma Coles	...	Louise
Kris McQuade	...	Janet, Louise's mother
Peter Hehir	...	Malcolm
Kerry Dwyer	...	Alison
Stephen Leeder	...	Jim
Debra May	...	Chris, Kelly's mother
John Sheerin	...	Dead Girl's Father
Sean Travers	...	Matthew
Emily Stocker	...	Soula
Lynne Murphy	...	School Principal
Giovanni Marangoni	...	Renato
Benny Ulizzi	...	Sam
Rory Delaney	...	Wally
Lisa Rogers	...	Little Helen
Amanda Frederickson	...	Kate
Martin Armiger	...	Phillip
Jim Madias	...	Con
Arthur Faynes	...	Chemist
Lorna King	...	Shop Assistant
Jane Ahlquist	...	Woman Friend
Elizabeth Gentle	...	Mother
Sher Guhl	...	Teacher
Neil Campbell	...	Teacher
Kim Antonios	...	Cleaner
Denise Roberts	...	Jessie
Mario Monti	...	Cleaner
Jim Waites	...	Dinner Party Guest
Peter Bowden	...	Panky
Ken Porter	...	Jason's Father
Tony Barry	...	Charlie
Steve Bisley	...	Kevin

Directed by
Jane Campion

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Helen Garner		written by

Produced by
Jane Campion	....	producer
Jan Chapman	....	producer

Original Music by
Martin Armiger

Cinematography by
Julian Penney

Film Editing by
Bill Russo

Production Design by
Janet Patterson

Costume Design by
Janet Patterson

Makeup Department
Sandie Bushell	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Carol Chirlian	....	production manager
Beverley Powers	....	unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Gary Stephens	....	second assistant director
Kate Woods	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Lynne Barrett	....	graphics (as Lynne Cartwright)
Adrian Cannon	....	props buyer
Claude Fortunata	....	stand-by props
Ian Hayward	....	stand-by props
Justin Sears	....	stand-by props
Catherine Silm	....	assistant designer

Sound Department
Chris Alderton	....	sound recordist
Stephen J. Hope	....	dubbing mixer (as Stephen Hope)
Stephen J. Hope	....	sound re-recording mixer
Des Horne	....	sound editor
Geoff Krix	....	sound assistant
Tony Vaccher	....	extra sound effects
Sasa Vitacek	....	assistant sound editor

Special Effects by
Laurie Faen	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Pierre Drion	....	electrician
Brett Joyce	....	focus puller
Martin Perrot	....	electrician
Gerard Quinn	....	assistant camera
Alan Trevena	....	grip

Casting Department
Jennifer Allen	....	casting consultant
Irene Gaskell	....	casting assistant

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Wendy Chuck	....	wardrobe

Editorial Department
Philippa Byers	....	assistant editor
Arthur Cambridge	....	color grader
Caro	....	colorist
Brian Jamieson	....	negative matcher

Music Department
Martin Armiger	....	musical director
Susan Clarke	....	musician: french horn
Dennis Hennig	....	musician: piano
Maki Toda	....	musician: student pianist

Other crew
Rhonda McAvoy	....	continuity
Susan Wells	....	production secretary

Distributors

• Milestone (1996) (USA)
• Milestone Film & Video (2001) (USA) (VHS)
• Milestone Film & Video (2002) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Kambala Church of England Girl's School  madrigal group

Runtime:

76 min

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Minor classic

Jane Campion made this film for Australian TV in 1985 and went to gain worldwide acclaim with The Piano in 1993. However, Two Friends is one of her earliest attempts at making a fully-fledged feature film. The deceptively simple story is about two teenage friends in Sydney , Kelly and Louise from different backgrounds who develop a strong bond, only for external circumstances and controls to disrupt that attachment. The coup de grace of the film is how Campion presents the story rather than what she shows us. The difference is crucial because the story is pretty basic to say the least; but the fact it is is told backwards, headed by monthly chapters, makes it a little bit special. The film demands to be seen numerous times in this sense to grasp the nuances of the beginning which is really the end and contrast it with the end which is really the beginning. By flipping narrative convention on its head, Canpion urges the viewer to be alert to what went wrong between the girls. It's a clever device that has inspired many film-makers, including a recent adherent, French auteur, Francois Ozon, whose latest release 5 x 2 follows the same narrative conceit but instead dramatizes the decline of a marriage.