Product Description

In this outrageously bawdy comedy, Don and his wife throw a party to watch the televised returns of Australia’s general election. As with all great parties, guests let their guards down, saying and doing things they might regret later.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #86705 in DVD
• Released on: 1999-06-29
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 90 minutes

Customer Reviews

Great Movie, Terrible DVD
It's a shame that the makers of this DVD put little to no effort into maintaining the quality of the original print. The pictue quality is below the standard of VHS (perhaps a PAL conversion?)and the sound has been mixed so poorly that you often can't hear what's being said due to the overbearing effects track. If you can manage to look past this butchering, you may be able to appreciate this great example of '70's Australian culture.

Fine play becomes brilliant film
Don's Party has become a catchphrase in Australia. Every election held for the state or federal governments is now climaxed by little suburban gatherings dubbed "Don's Parties".

The brilliant stage play by David Williamson has captured the Australian idiom in 1969 as a new generation of Australians, fresh from university and questioning the suffocation of 1950s Australia, began to express themselves.

While it would be easy to dismiss this generation as flakey old baby boomers today, back then they seemed like courageous, questioning pioneers.

The Bruce Beresford film is utterly faitherful to the play (see Beresford as the drive-in bottleshop attendant in the opening few minutes as Graham Kennedy stocks up on the way to Don's place).

It is hilarious and damning at the same time as the vast gulf between Australian men and women is explored in the midst of a remarkable political crucible of the late 1960s.

Of course, in the midst of such brilliant dialogue, one line stands out. Family values prevent me from repeating it here, but watch out for Curley's words of welcome as he arrives at Don's with a box full of beer.

Excellent flick, beware DVD, look for VHS
I saw Don's Party in theatrical release, then on VHS, then on DVD. The film is basically talk, so the poor sound mix on the DVD is frustrating indeed. Fortunately I kept my VHS, and will probably stick to watching that; I watchthe film about every five years.