Thunderbolt (1910 film)
Encyclopedia
Thunderbolt is a 1910
film in the genre of "outlaw" films at the time that tended to glorify the life of the outlaw "Bushrangers" that roamed the Australian outback in pre-commonwealth days. Shortly after this movie was made, the government of New South Wales
banned the manufacture of this type of film on the basis that they were promoting crime.
. He escapes only to learn that his fiancée has died of grief. He seeks his revenge by taking on a life of crime, becoming the bushranger Captain Thunderbolt. He is rescued from a police trap by a half-caste girl, holds up a hotel, and dies in a shoot out with police.
, Three Years With Thunderbolt. John Gavin directed the movie, and played the lead role of Frederick Ward. Shooting took place in Lithgow and Hartley Vale.
and Frank Gardiner
.
1910 in film
The year 1910 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*The newsreel footage of the funeral of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom is shot in Kinemacolor, making it the first color newsreel....
film in the genre of "outlaw" films at the time that tended to glorify the life of the outlaw "Bushrangers" that roamed the Australian outback in pre-commonwealth days. Shortly after this movie was made, the government of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
banned the manufacture of this type of film on the basis that they were promoting crime.
Synopsis
Frederick Ward is a cattle drover earning money for his wedding when he is accused of cattle theft and sentenced to seven years at Cockatoo IslandCockatoo Island, New South Wales
Cockatoo Island is the largest island in Sydney Harbour in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Located at the junction of the Parramatta and Lane Cove rivers, Cockatoo Island is a former imperial prison, industrial school, reformatory and gaol. It was also the site of one of Australia's biggest...
. He escapes only to learn that his fiancée has died of grief. He seeks his revenge by taking on a life of crime, becoming the bushranger Captain Thunderbolt. He is rescued from a police trap by a half-caste girl, holds up a hotel, and dies in a shoot out with police.
Production
H. A. Forsyth produced the film and adapted the novel by William Monckton and Ambrose PrattAmbrose Pratt
Ambrose Goddard Hesketh Pratt was an Australian writer born into a cultivated family in Forbes, New South Wales....
, Three Years With Thunderbolt. John Gavin directed the movie, and played the lead role of Frederick Ward. Shooting took place in Lithgow and Hartley Vale.
Reception
The film was so popular, Gavin subsequently went on to make films about Captain Moonlite, Ben HallBen Hall
Ben Hall was an Australian bushranger of the 19th century. Operating mainly in New South Wales, he was known variously as 'Bold Ben Hall', 'Brave Ben Hall' and 'The Gentleman Bushranger' for his avoidance of bloodshed and his audacious raids, many of which were intended simply to taunt the police...
and Frank Gardiner
Frank Gardiner
Frank Gardiner was a noted Australian bushranger of the 19th century. He was born in Scotland about 1827 and migrated from to Australia as a child with his parents in 1834,. His real name was Francis Christie, though he often used one of several other aliases including Gardiner, Clarke or Christie...
.