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IMDbPro

The Everlasting Secret Family

  • 19881988
  • UnratedUnrated
  • 1h 34m
IMDb RATING
5.5/10
355
YOUR RATING
The Everlasting Secret Family (1988)
  • Drama
  • Romance
A beautiful, if ambitious and amoral, youth is tapped to become the lover of a powerful senator. The young man quickly realizes that he can hold this place, with all its perks, only as long ... Read allA beautiful, if ambitious and amoral, youth is tapped to become the lover of a powerful senator. The young man quickly realizes that he can hold this place, with all its perks, only as long as he is young. He has no other function than being young. With the help of an aged judge,... Read allA beautiful, if ambitious and amoral, youth is tapped to become the lover of a powerful senator. The young man quickly realizes that he can hold this place, with all its perks, only as long as he is young. He has no other function than being young. With the help of an aged judge, the young man, referred to only as The Lover, contrives a plan to make a change in the wa... Read all
IMDb RATING
5.5/10
355
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Michael Thornhill
  • Writer
    • Frank Moorhouse(adaptation: of the book "The Everlasting Secret Family & Other Secrets" by)
  • Stars
    • Arthur Dignam
    • Mark Lee
    • Heather Mitchell
Top credits
  • Director
    • Michael Thornhill
  • Writer
    • Frank Moorhouse(adaptation: of the book "The Everlasting Secret Family & Other Secrets" by)
  • Stars
    • Arthur Dignam
    • Mark Lee
    • Heather Mitchell
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 5User reviews
    • 1Critic review
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 2 nominations

    Photos

    The Everlasting Secret Family (1988)
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    Top cast

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    Arthur Dignam
    Arthur Dignam
    • Senator
    Mark Lee
    Mark Lee
    • Youth
    Heather Mitchell
    Heather Mitchell
    • Wife
    Dennis Miller
    • Eric the Chauffeur
    Paul Goddard
    Paul Goddard
    • Son
    Beth Child
    • Pottery Woman
    John Clayton
    John Clayton
    • Mayor
    Nick Holland
    • New Chauffeur
    Bogdan Koca
    Bogdan Koca
    • Medical Specialist
    Michael Kozuki
    • Mr. Akutangana
    Tim Page
    • New Judge
    Anna Volska
    • Wife's Friend
    Michael Winchester
    • School Teacher
    John Meillon
    John Meillon
    • Judge
    Drew Norman
    • Oil Boy
    Alan Carey
    • Doctor at Oval
    Ken Keen
    • Headmaster
    Marcus Cornelius
    • Teacher at Oval
    • Director
      • Michael Thornhill
    • Writer
      • Frank Moorhouse(adaptation: of the book "The Everlasting Secret Family & Other Secrets" by)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Paul Goddard's character ("The Son") tells Mark Lee ("The Youth") that he would love to see the site of the Battle of Gallipoli someday. Mark Lee starred in the film of Gallipoli (1981) with Mel Gibson.
    • Goofs
      During his first encounter at the hotel, the Youth's grip on his creme de menthe glass changes between shots.
    • Connections
      Featured in The Hidden History of Homosexual Australia (2005)

    User reviews5

    Review
    Top review
    Not To All Tastes
    Affluent Australian senator & government minister (Arthur Dignam) spies an athletic teenager (Mark Lee) at an private school's track & field event. A chauffeured limousine is sent to the school in the days later to bring the teen to a hotel to have sex with the senator. This becomes a regular occurrence even though the public reputation of the senator would be destroyed were the arrangement to become public.

    As he becomes the senator's rent boy and enjoys certain extravagant privileges the youth is also expected to provide sexual favours to men whom the senator designates (timeshare?). The boy, who is never named, develops a haughty attitude even (or especially) as he is passed around by wealthy and powerful perverted old men. Concurrent to that is his membership in the secret society of which the senator is a member of high rank.

    The boy's place in the secret society appears, at first, to have a low ceiling. He fears he can hope to go only as high as a rent boy. Inevitably as he reaches adulthood and ages his currency will diminish after which he is told he may look forward to life as a chauffeur or some other form of blue collar servant. He seeks out a more beneficial arrangement with surprising results.

    Several mortifying political scandals (Profumo Scandal, Franklin Cover-Up) over the centuries have given examples which may have provided inspiration for what is shown in this film. But this really is a highly speculative account of imagined happenings in imagined secret societies which supposedly determine the major decisions that effect the lives of common everyday folk.

    The secret society myth is part of our modern folklore i.e. urban legends.
    helpful•4
    2
    • JasonDanielBaker
    • Apr 4, 2014

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 1989 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • Australia
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Secreto inconfesable
    • Filming locations
      • Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
    • Production companies
      • FGH
      • Hemdale
      • International Film Management
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 34 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono

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