As intelligent, funny, and insightful as the man himself.
For anybody who has lived in Australia and/or New Zealand in the last 40 years, John Clarke is a household name. A beloved satirist, writer, and comedic actor, Clarke died unexpectedly in 2017 while on a hiking trip in the Grampians.
Lorin Clarke is a highly talented writer, director, and actor. She is also one of Clarke’s beloved daughters. So who better to write and direct a documentary about the man who helped shaped her, and the Oz/Kiwi cultural dialogue.
But Also John Clarke (full title Not Only Fred Dagg but also…) looks at Clarke as both father and satirist. Going back to his early days in NZ we trace the beginnings of his iconic character Fred Dagg, who gave New Zealanders someone they could relate to as opposed to the pseudo-British pomposity of early NZ TV at the time. Dagg (and Clarke) moved seamlessly to Australia, where he began holding a mirror to our own nation first through ABC radio talks, usually signing off with “anyway, my bus is here, so I’ll get out of your way.”
Clarke has put together a fast-paced, personable, engaging feature, using home video, interviews conducted especially for the film, and of course, clips of the man himself in work such as The Games, Kath and Kim, Death in Brunswick, and Fred Dagg. She also narrates throughout, and this gives a rare charm and warmth to a documentary, ensuring it is both objective enough to be rigorous, and subjective enough to be emotionally engaging.
Interviews include archival footage of John, which are particularly fascinating as he talks about his comedic and satirical influences such as the great Peter Cook. Recent chats with some of his friends, family, and colleagues, include Andrew Denton, Anne Edmonds, Ben Elton, Bryan Dawe, and Ernie Dingo. Jana Wendt also chats about the Clarke-Dawe interviews which first aired on A Current Affair, before moving to 7.30 Report on ABC.
But Also John Clarke is an important testamentary work in Australian and New Zealand culture, capturing as it does a vital figure, but also a pivotal time span: if you will, the antipodean cultural equivalent of the great vowel shift.
Above all, this is a deliciously enjoyable, and masterfully made, piece of cinema in its own right.
John Clarke would be proud.
Related
