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stranded in shit

14/9/2015

34 Comments

 
It’s not often I post up what might be termed an anti-advert or reverse-spruik, but in the instance of Stranded, a new documentary aired by the ABC on September 15, I feel compelled to, and not just to try and make excuses for my own involvement as a talking head, but to issue a warning generally. Stranded puports to be the story of the Saints and the besieged punk underground that festered in Bjelke-Petersen’s Brisbane in their wake, but it barely does half of that, and then poorly. It is a dog’s breakfast that manages to pull off the difficult feat of taking great material and making a meal of it, or worse still, missing the point altogether. 
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When I agreed to be interviewed for the film, I did so because it was in good hands – those of Buried Country director Andy Nehl, who knows this particular story well, and knows how to use the medium of documentary films to tell stories a broad audience can appreciate. But then Andy was sacked, and the film that’s resulted is a wasted opportunity that to name just its most major failing spends large swathes of time on the generic treatment of a story everybody already knows anyway (the rise of punk in London and New York; it’s as if these film-makers have just found out about it!) at the expense of the unique story under its nose, which it’s still misleadingly pushing as its selling-point (the promo under that banner was accompanied by a photo of Bob Geldof!); it just serves as yet another unwanted extension of the old Australian cultural cringe, whereby we’re nothing without approval from overseas. And the film is full of stock library music! You’ve got to be kidding!! The list of crimes could go on… oh alright, I’ll name them: tons of irrelevant footage from 50s American horror films (doubtless because it’s free); factual errors all over the place; a complete lack of continuity and even then no dramatic dynamics; an overabundant voiceover so cliched it’s worthy of Paul Clark; minor characters getting major airtime (even more egregious when I could ask: Where’s Jim Dickson? Where’s Warwick Vere? Where’s Brad Shepherd? Where’s Mark Halstead?)… But the worst indictment is perhaps of ABC-TV, which continues to content itself with this sort of second-rate pap. You’d do much better to read Andrew Stafford’s justly-celebrated book Pig City – why didn’t they just make a film of that? Why didn’t they make a film of my own book Stranded, which was first proposed as such as far back as the late 90s? Approach with extreme caution. 
34 Comments
Scott Holmes
21/9/2015 10:32:37 pm

Glad I missed it now....... and even gladder I haven't yet wasted time catching on iView. Thanks for the heads up Clinton.

Hope you're well,
Scott

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Dead right.what a fucking waste of time.Clinton why don't you make a better one.
22/9/2015 01:17:44 am

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Duncan
23/9/2015 04:44:48 am

Unfortunately.... I DID watch it on iView. I'd seen it on the teev but I thought I'd do it the honour of watching it 'properly'. It's absolute crap. I watched it to the end thinking it might improve. Nope. Unmitigated crap to the very end.

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Jennifer Jackman
21/9/2015 11:12:49 pm

See my comments. The term 'cultural cringe' was used and my major issue with the beyond irritating insertion of irrelevant 50s American sci Fi junk. What a waste!

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Frank MacGill
21/9/2015 11:48:22 pm

Did they pay Bob Geldof by the cliche? No wonder they ran out of budget early.

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Jonathan Sequeira
22/9/2015 12:06:26 am

Absolutely agree. What a waste. I'm pretty sure that Jim Dickson was interviewed, but that it was never used. The ABC has a blanket APRA/AMCOS broadcast agreement, so I suspect that library music was used with DVD sales in mind.

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david studdert
22/9/2015 12:18:22 am

well said clint -- i can imagine even from this distance what a pigs dinner it was -- - still as you say leaves the real story untouched along with all the others have some faith big boy the day is coming

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Falcon Randwick
22/9/2015 01:20:48 am

All that and the supremely self-centred Megan Washington. I mean, WTfuckingF?

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Deb
22/9/2015 01:50:25 am

Here here! Glad to know I wasn't the only one who was disappointed that 90% of the 'documentary' was about overseas artists. I was looking forward to hearing about the Aussie scene.
How about making a doco version of Inner City Sound?

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David Messer
22/9/2015 02:00:38 am

Clinton, I had been cursing myself for missing this when broadcast, but upon reading your summation I can see I was better off washing the dishes or whatever else I was doing at the time.

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Amber Bushby
22/9/2015 03:48:48 am

What are you people talking about? It was a great doco and it had lots of footage of Aussie and Queensland bands. And the overseas artists that were interviewed for it mainly talked about their experience with the Australian punk scene. Also, for this doco to reach a wider audience, it's a good idea to include some famous international artists. It helps promote the film overseas.

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Susan Bowden link
22/9/2015 04:03:15 am

Sounds tricky as they have titled the doco " Stranded " , same as your book ... it must be tough to be aligned so closely.

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Marie Ryan
22/9/2015 07:35:36 am

Agree totally, Clinton, it was poorly constructed with most of the UK stuff not relevant, and supremely annoying in the way it constantly sought Bob Geldof's approval. I cringed all the way through. And to think the ABC broadcast this rubbish in its 'arts' slot.

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Debra Thorsen link
22/9/2015 07:57:42 am

Andy Nehl got sacked??? what for??? Glad I missed it, although I'm perversely curious now

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Kaye Blackman
22/9/2015 03:06:31 pm

g'day Clinton. Was regretting I missed it, so sad to hear it failed so badly to tell a really great story.

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Carly
22/9/2015 05:44:02 pm

I was surprised Bono wasn't in it saying "U2 wouldn't have existed if it wasn't for -insert documentary subject here-"... Geldof's approval will have to do...I could have also done without Biafra.

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Tracey
22/9/2015 06:16:53 pm

I wondered how any of the 50s footage was relevant.

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Hells Bells
22/9/2015 06:57:16 pm

A bizarre program in search of a direction...it also included a shocking mispronunciation of Forster/McLennan...

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Clive Miller
22/9/2015 07:04:49 pm

That's a shame Andy didn't get to complete this. Clearly a loss for all involved.

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Kirsten Tona
22/9/2015 07:41:59 pm

Don't forget the way it was edited, either for or by the can't-concentrate-on-any-shot-for-more-than-half-a-second generation.
And the way it was implied The Saints left Brisbane for Joh-related political reasons— which I'm not sure Ed Kuepper would entirely agree with.

Damn shame when good material is trivialised. I doubt Andy Nehl would have let it go to air in that state, and yes, the V.O. was goddam awful.

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Ian Buchanan
22/9/2015 07:57:54 pm

Spot on Clinton! Glad you felt compelled! Can't help but love seeing the old footage of the Brizzy music scene, but spoiled with it's lack of focus and too much pap! Agreed! Love your insightful writing! Cheers!

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Chip Wardale link
23/9/2015 01:35:35 am

I feel like a real turd saying what you just said to people, but its true and I felt ripped off. If we only get one good shot at this stuff its has to be right. I get Jello and I get JJ being included but the others? I couldn't believe the Mick Harvey comment they chose to include. Proper parochialism, as if Melbourne is the only place capable of making meaningful music. Puke.

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jodi (JJ) adams
23/9/2015 01:45:19 am

Haven't seen it and not in a huge hurry to now.

Sounds tragically typical of so much media these days, whether print or online or film/radio/documentaries...the "near enough is good enough" attitude,

Hear if ALL the time e.g. on Radio National arts programs where decades are frequently mixed up and wrong info given.

Of course, if you dare to complain, you are considered pedantic or obsessive or told that no-one apart from (picky old) people like you will complain about "minor" inaccuracies.

Thanks Clinton for (as always) never being afraid to be the boy who points out the emperor has no clothes!!!

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Hoody
23/9/2015 02:00:53 am

yeah absolutely Clinton, watched it last night, didn't get to the end, started off ok but found myself filling the gaps with my own stories, well yeah ok, yelling at the telly, gave up and put "do the robot" on to get over it

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David N. Pepperell
23/9/2015 04:52:44 pm

It's the way of the world Clint. I never watch any of these TV "docos" on pop music because they are always wrong and written by mid 20 year olds who weren't there and don't have a clue.The recent Peter Allen fiasco is just another example. Of course they should have just used your book but then they would have had to pay you some money!

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David Holliday
23/9/2015 05:31:08 pm

Thanks for (boldly sharing your thoughts which, for what its worth, I agree with. If it was to tell the story of the Saints it sort of did that.
If it was to tell the story of Brisbane punk in the mid to late 70's it sort of did that. The time lines in a lot of things were out of wack to suit their story. Don't get me started about the O/S stars or even the southern ones. There is plenty of locals from the time still around like Bruce A & Jim D - still we got V2 & Ed . It was a story & light entertainment but it pretended to be a documentary & something factual, sigh a wasted opportunity that is unlikely to come around again unless someone like yourself can "make it so"..

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Peter
24/9/2015 02:37:39 am

Spot on Clinton . The abc is obsessed with this blurry faux footage of reenactments that mean sweet fuck all and are totally irrelevant . Did the same with the Alfred doco. Totally lazy and sloppy production and what the Paddington town hall footage was doing there is anyone's guess . It was pap except for Ed

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Gas Wylde
24/9/2015 03:37:40 pm

Clint, so well and deservedly eviscerated. Having formed and played in Brisbane rock bands during Joh's heyday [more 1980 on] The band I was in did in fact move south largely because of the peanut farmer's shadow. Not much going on that wasn't on the covers circuit. What's iinteresting is that such dishwatery portrayals of what was going on in Vegas could be shoved out there as some version of the reality when patently it's not. Not surprising though. Personally I reckon the Reign of King Richard [Kingsmill] at the ABC has overseen the collapse of grass roots rock music at least here in Sydney. Maybe they [the ABC] have something to gain in distancing themselves from dirty kids wanting to play in a rock and roll band. Here's to blokes like you trying to set the record straight champ.

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Rusty H
24/9/2015 08:41:25 pm

Couldn't bring myself to watch it. I knew it would angry up the blood!

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Peter
29/9/2015 09:21:49 am

I agree, the show is a fraud in many respects. The so-called "documentary" is really a kind of fantasy woven together by a bunch of crétins (excuse my French) living in the wrong city and probably in the wrong time period.

They simply don't have the credentials, the sensitivities, or insights to make a half-way decent documentary on this subject, but rather it is more like an overly long music video made by (I suspect) career obsessed hipsters.

But even as an abstract music video it fails because you hear very little of the music, just snippets that they talk over the top of with their inane, wall-to-wall commentary (sigh).

The way I see it, the documentary works more on the level of fanciful perceptions (speculation) sprinkled with just enough factual information to give the appearance that you are watching a reliable documentary rather than a reinterpretation by creative imaginations who (by definition) know little about the situation they are describing. This is art not documentary. It is a collage not history.

The crime of the century was to sack the director, Andy Nehl, who could have made something worthwhile and meaningful from this jumble of nonsense.

The problem with the show is the pretense the "documentary" is something it is not. Frankly it is a scam in large part......the audience is being hoodwinked. Stranded in shit indeed.....

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Levin
8/10/2015 03:13:58 pm

Yeah, that mispronunciation of Forster _and_ McLennan was the thing that really made it shockingly bad for me. And The Buzzcocks weren't from London. All those bad American horror movie clips were useless filler. I hoped was going to learn something, ha! I'm wondering how everyone else who agreed to appear in this piece of crap. And who the fuck was the guy narrating it? Why was it broadcast without being checked for accuracy? To the ABC I say "Know Your Product". So disappointed and angry.

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Chris West
12/5/2016 10:45:40 pm

Never saw it when it was originally aired, but it has finally been posted on You Tube. Not quite as bad as I thought it would be, but as I'd only heard bad reports of the doco I guess I had very low expectations.

Being Victorian born and bred, I found the coverage of the political climate in Queensland during the 1970's very interesting.

As has been pointed out, the voiceover was appalling and there was way too much footage of foreign "talking heads". The excruciating Bob Geldof should have been left on the editing floor. With so much unnecessary overseas content in it , it makes you wonder if the ABC were packaging it so they could try and sell it overseas.

If nothing else the doco did reinforce two things: Ed Kuepper is one of Australia's best dressed musicians and an all round cool dude

I wonder if the producers had seen the great Dr Feelgood doco Oil City Confidential and pinched the idea of using old b/w film excerpts. Worked well in Oil City, but looked completely ridiculous in Stranded

It is just a shame, the whole thing could have been done so much better.

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Chris West
12/5/2016 10:46:08 pm

Never saw it when it was originally aired, but it has finally been posted on You Tube. Not quite as bad as I thought it would be, but as I'd only heard bad reports of the doco I guess I had very low expectations.

Being Victorian born and bred, I found the coverage of the political climate in Queensland during the 1970's very interesting.

As has been pointed out, the voiceover was appalling and there was way too much footage of foreign "talking heads". The excruciating Bob Geldof should have been left on the editing floor. With so much unnecessary overseas content in it , it makes you wonder if the ABC were packaging it so they could try and sell it overseas.

If nothing else the doco did reinforce two things: Ed Kuepper is one of Australia's best dressed musicians and an all round cool dude

I wonder if the producers had seen the great Dr Feelgood doco Oil City Confidential and pinched the idea of using old b/w film excerpts. Worked well in Oil City, but looked completely ridiculous in Stranded

It is just a shame, the whole thing could have been done so much better.

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Ian D
14/7/2018 08:30:16 pm

Ironically we gave Andy Nehl footage of the Toy Watches film clip of which I was the guitarist.Toy Watches was a band based in Ipswich in the 1979-1980 time period. Kim Bradshaw's sister produced the clip as a student at Griffith Uni. Although we are not credited in the documentary, the clip is used several times during the documentary.

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    CLINTON WALKER

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