Movie-Rabbit-Proof Fence

RAbbit- Proof Fence... The moment you read this you might be thinking whats there to write about rabbits and proof fences. I hope not !!

Interestingly this is the name of an Australian movie released in 2002. The movie is adopted from the book Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence by Doris. THe movie or the book ( which I am yet to read)is about the life of the author's mother Molly Craig, her younger sister - Daisy and there cousin Gracie Fields.
The story is about Molly who along with Daisy & Gracie who are mixed race aboriginals girls ran away from the Moore River in Perth, Australia to return to their aboriginals tribe. The three girls are claimed to be mixed raced aborginals and forcibly sent taken from their mother in Jialong and sent to
Moore River.They try to escape following the Rabbit Proof fence ( there are three fences in which runs from the north coast of Western Australia to Sothern part) which is pest exclusion fence.
There journey is very interesting & touching to see how the three girls managed to escape from Neville each time, (who was then supposed to be the Protector of the aboriginals), Modoo (another aboriginal who is helper to Neville), prison garbs, dogs, dog troppers and meeting other supporters like Mavis.The girls crossed a flooded river, sand dunes, heathlands, wheatbelt, mallee country, gibber plains, red dust, salt lake. They slept in dug-out rabbit burrows, caught and cooked rabbits, and ate bibijali, a kind of sweet potato, and karkula, a wild banana.
When their legs were weary, sore and infected by grass cuts, Molly piggy-backed Daisy, & Gracie in turn.
Sad but true only two of the girls Molly and Daisy make it and eventually meet their mother after 9 weeks of travel on foot everyday they walked 40 miles. Gracie on the other hand is tricked by the authorities and eventually get caught and never makes it to Jialong too.
Actually they never heard of Gracie again. In the end its the happy Molly and Daisy with their community.


Interesingly the Author of the Book- Doris herself was forcibly taken away from her mother Molly at age 4 to Moore river in Perth going through the same facility as her mother. It was after 25 years did Doris meet her mother Molly, they didnot talk much
and neither was she aware of her mother's captivity too and her escapism until her Aunt Daisy did'nt tell her the story.The author wrote this book in 1985 but it never got published she again re0interviewed her mother & aunt and eventually the book got
published in 1996 and the movie was made in 2002 which i saw in 2007. :)


The main characters Molly & Daisy were still alive during the making of the movie at age 85 & 79 years old living in Jialong region.The movie Rabbit-Proof fence was premiered in Jialong too ( a remote location in Western Australia of the Mardudjara community) with a population of 300-500. The guest of honor was Molly and it was her first movie premier, infact the first movie she had ever seen. Infact all through the movie she kept saying she wants to go home :)

Sadly molly died at age 87 in 2004. After seeing the movie and hearing the songs i did say "yes indeed 1500 miles would had a been a long walk home for you Molly & Daisy" and quite true "Her legacy is the calming influence and quiet dignity of the desert women, and the stolen generations story,which looked at you straight in the eye"