Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
![]() |
Charles McCallum | ... | Brother Sebastian |
![]() |
John Frawley | ... | Brother Celian |
Arthur Dignam | ... | Brother Francine | |
Nick Tate | ... | Brother Victor | |
![]() |
Peter Cox | ... | Brother James |
Jonathan Hardy | ... | Brother Arnold | |
![]() |
Gerry Duggan | ... | Brother Hanrahan |
![]() |
Thomas Keneally | ... | Father Marshall |
Sheila Florance | ... | Mrs.Sullivan | |
Simon Burke | ... | Tom Allen | |
![]() |
John Diedrich | ... | Fitz |
Alan Cinis | ... | Waite | |
![]() |
Richard Morgan | ... | Smith |
![]() |
Rowan Currie | ... | Casey |
![]() |
Gary Pixton | ... | Tomkin |
Fred Schepisi's film, 'The Devil's Playground' is an intimate portrait of Tom, a thirteen-year-old struggling in spirit and body with the constraints of living in a Catholic seminary. It is also the story of the Brothers and how they cope with the demands of their faith. Written by hawkeye
This was a very thought provoking film for me and after several years I'd love to see it again (I've seen it twice on TV). The young hero was so natural I felt I knew him, and he had a very likable personality. The two monks in mufti enjoying a night on the town were more down to earth and likable than most of the other monks at the Catholic boarding school and after successfully picking up two women in a pub they got cold feet! It was interesting to see how another monk who seemed very emotionally cold dealt with a trip to a mixed gender public swimming baths, and the amazing erotic dream he had afterwards. The subjects of troubled adolescence and religious repression were well explored. The film hasn't dated at all. I hope someone brings this out on a DVD.