Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Truly Dreadful Film

Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

I saw this movie twice, but would never hurry to see it again. While Deborah Kerr, Robert Mitchum, Peter Ustinov, and Michael Anderson, Jr. were rather convincing in their roles, the movie was was insipid. Again, Robert Mitchum did well as Paddy...the sheep drover who wanted to never settle down...and Deborah Kerr seemed to click with him as she portrayed Ida, the wife who, though she loved him, was at a conflict with him, since she did not want to keep on going across Australia. But, there was really no story, basically. They stopped, slept, started again the next day, and that was it. While the movie was wholesome, again, it was just there, and nothing would motivate me to sit through it another time.

Set in the Australian outback In the 1920's, this forgotten 1960 saga is one of those films that has not quite gained a cult following but still provides delights upon discovery. At first glance, it feels like it will be a Disney live-action adventure along the lines of "Swiss Family Robinson", but director Fred Zinnemann (just coming off his acclaimed "The Nun's Story") presents a more complex dynamic around the Carmodys, an itinerant Irish-Australian family of three who travels from town to town picking up whatever work they can find (thus the film's title), usually driving large herds of sheep from one station to another. Paddy is the ostensible head of one such "sundowner" family, a proud man who enjoys being rootless. His steadfast wife Ida and dutiful son Sean, however, have grown tired of the constant movement and want to buy a farm so they can settle down. After picking up refined, jack-of-all- trades Englishman Rupert Venneker as an extra drover and surviving a life-threatening brush fire, Ida convinces Paddy to take a job at a station shearing sheep where she becomes the cook, Rupert a wool roller, and Sean as a tar boy. As Ida collects their earnings in a Mason jar, Paddy starts to get feelings of wanderlust again, and the inevitable family struggle occurs.Now throw in an unaided baby delivery, a sheep-shearing contest, and a horse race, and you get the idea of what goes on in this episodic story which manages to be constantly engaging despite the lack of real conflict in the story. A lot of the credit belongs to the two stars reunited from their previous vehicle, John Huston's "Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison" (1957). Speaking with a convincing Aussie accent, Robert Mitchum manages to exude his particular brand of machismo without losing his humility as Paddy. Deborah Kerr makes plainspoken Ida a tower of tolerance and still holds her own with clear authority. Together they generate a sexy and honest rapport that gives the movie its beating heart and makes the concessions each character make for the other believable. A solid cast provides able support including Peter Ustinov as the erudite Rupert, Glynis Johns (later Mrs. Banks in "Mary Poppins") as a feisty bar owner who captures Rupert's heart, and Michael Anderson Jr. as too-good-to-be-true Sean. The economical screenplay is credited to Isobel Lennart ("Funny Girl") but was mostly penned by the author of the source novel, Jon Cleary. David Lean's favorite cinematographer Jack Hildyard ("The Bridge on the River Kwai") does an impressive job capturing the barren outback in all its sunbaked beauty.

I would love to sit and watch this film with an Aussie. That's because as an American, I don't know enough to know how accurate this movie is--and if the accents of all the non-Australians in the leads are even close to being correct.This film is about a family of migrant workers--not a lazy 'sundowner' (see the IMDb trivia for more on this). They travel across Australia driving and shearing sheep to make a few quid--always on the move and no permanent home of their own. As for the husband (Robert Mitchum), he loves this sort of life with few responsibilities. But the wife (Deborah Kerr) is getting tired and sees a need to settle down and finally have a house of their own--especially since their son is getting older and wants some permanence in his life. The vast majority of the film, though, is almost like a documentary--showing what the life is like--like you get a little window into their migrant ways.This is a well made film. The acting, direction and music are all quite nice. My only serious qualm is that the film is slow and I know many folks simply wouldn't sit still for such a seemingly mundane plot. But, if you are patient, it's well worth your time.

Director Fred Zinnemann helmed this wonderful screen-version of Jon Cleary's book about an Australian sheepherder who is at odds with his headstrong wife: he wants to keep moving, traveling from place to place without putting down roots, while she would prefer settling down and giving their teenage son a chance to make friends. Richly-textured comedy-drama comes together splendidly after an awkward beginning, with well-matched Deborah Kerr and Robert Mitchum (reunited from 1957's "Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison") doing terrific work in the leads, Peter Ustinov equally fine as a bachelor they meet along the way. A lengthy film, but never a boring one, with beautiful photography and memorable characters and set-pieces. ***1/2 from ****