[ Wind Whistling ]
♪♪[ Harmonium Playing, Faint]
[Animal Howls]
No matter which way I figure it,
nowt and nowt still equals nowt. ♪♪ [ Stops]
[Animal Howls In Distance]
How about we get Bess in foal?
- Pick up some more broodmares. - What with?
If we're gonna keep this place, we're gonna have to get a job-
out of the high country.
Down on the flats? Yeah.
It won't be too bad. We can hire out as a team.
Not as cooks. [Chuckles] Watch it.
[Horse Whinnies]
[ Laughing ] Must be your music.
All right. I'll see to it.
[ Horse Blustering ]
[Animal Howls]
Hey, Bessie. [Whinnies ]
- [ Whinnying] - Whoa, Bessie.
Bess, whoa.
[Whinnying]
Steady, girl. Steady there, Bessie.
Whoa, Bessie.
Steady, girl. Whoa there, girl.
I reckon the dingoes set her off.
Not wild dogs.
[Horse Whinnies]
- Wild horses. - The old thoroughbred's mob.
It's been years since he's been on this side of the ranges.
[Whinnying Continues]
[ Son ] You're not gonna shoot him! He's only gonna cause us grief.
Run off our horses. He's done it before. But, Dad-
There are some good horses there now.
They'd be worth a fair bit.
Caught and broken they might. Well?
We could do it. Keep some of them for breeding.
Then we wouldn't have to go down and hire out.
Hold on, Son.
That horse has been running free since the day you were born.
[ Chuckling ] Craftiest animal I've ever seen.
Well, who better than a crafty mountain man to catch him?
You've got your mother's way about you, haven't you? [Whinnying]
We could build a holding yard up on the flat spur, and drive them in.
No, I don't think so. We'll yard them on Kelly's track.
[Wood Cracks ]
[ Clicks Tongue ] Come on. Giddap.
Come on.
Ooh there. Good boy.
[Clucks Tongue] Come on. Giddap.
Good boy.
Looks like we're building a fort, not holding yards.
When we drop this across the track they'll never get out.
[ Blustering]
- [ Hoof-beats Approaching ] - [ Whinnies ]
- Bess! - Jim! The gelding!
- [ Groans ] - Dad!
Dad.
I should have put a bullet in that stallion.
I'll get you down to Spur's place. [ Coughs ]
[Coughing]
[Groaning]
The gelding's broken his leg.
We'll have to put him down.
Where's Bess? She ran off with the brumbies.
[ Chuckles ]
Spur's not gonna be too happy about that.
Spur and me-
We had a lot of dreams.
[Laughs] Lot of good times too.
No! [ Echoing ]
[ Baby Crying ]
[Crying Continues]
[ Man Whistles ]
[ Exhales ]
[ Man, Indistinct]
[Sighs]
"United in death," the minister said.
- Superstition. - It's a nice thought, Spur.
It's a great comfort to widows and fools.
There's more to life than death, Jim.
Well, that's it, lad.
You can't stay up here.
But... this is my place now.
I own it. Ownin' it's got nothin' to do with it.
It's who can make a go of it up here that counts.
I can look after myself.
Maybe. Someday.
What gives you the right to say who can-
Look!
You go down to the low country,
and earn the right to live up here.
Just like your father did.
Come on.
They blame me for this. It's a hard country.
Makes for hard men.
[ Whistles ] Go on.
Whoa.
Come on.
I'll get the fire goin'.
Hmm. Ahh!
Spur's Wallaby stew-
Mmm! Spoken of in hushed and reverent tones.
[ Chuckles ]
Dad was talkin' the other day...
of you takin' the harmonium up the mountain.
Ah, your mother's music box.
You know, your father and me brought that
up the mountain with never a scratch on it.
She gave me this seat. Hmm. Ooh.
Figured I could use it more. [ Laughs ]
Mmm-How's that mare Bess? She ran off with the brumbies.
The old thoroughbred's mob.
Hmm? The big black.
Yeah.
I remember that animal.
I'll get her back. Oh, sure you will.
You'll just walk in and pluck her out of a thousand square miles of wilderness.
I will, Spur. Sure.
I'll run down that mob and fetch her back.
Sure, and on foot too.
Come on.
[ Peg Leg Tapping ]
I have no notion of his breeding,
but he's a mountain horse, and a good one.
He's yours.
I can't pay you for him. He's not for sale.
Now, hold on, Spur- Don't argue.
A man without a horse is like a man without legs.
[ Blusters ] [Laughs]
Thank you, Spur. Now I'll get the mare back.
Forget the mare, ya duffer. Don't throw effort after foolishness.
[Horse Whinnies]
For you, sir, I could get down to two guineas an 'ead.
Very kind of you. Good luck.
Thank you.
I tell you what, sir. Pounds.
I've got other things on my mind today.
Damn Yankee.
Who is that? Harrison.
He'll be getting his colt.
They say it's worth a thousand pounds.
A colt worth a thousand pounds?
[Train Engine Chugging]
[Whistle Blows]
[ Brakes Screeching ]
Mr. Paterson! Ah.
Listen, I'm sorry about this blasted circus.
Oh, anything to get me away from the city.
Especially when it's to bring you the finest colt in the colony.
Well, he should be, for the price.
[ Chuckles ]
Old Regret- The last colt she foaled.
Irreplaceable.
- [ Yapping ] - [ Nickering ]
- [ Nickering, Whinnying] - [ Barking]
[Crowd Murmuring]
[Whinnying]
Let go, mate. Let bloody go!
[ Crowd Chattering ] Are you all right, Jessica?
If I needed your help, mate, I would have asked for it.
[Jim] Whoa. Whoa. Easy, boy.
[Whinnies] Whoa. Ooh.
[ BOY] You're it!
Well, I think we're all indebted to young Mr.-
Craig. Jim Craig. Andrew Paterson.
And that was, uh, Mr. Harrison and his charming daughter Jessica.
Hmm. Charming. Are you a stock agent, Mr. Paterson?
No. As a matter of fact, I'm a lawyer, Jim.
How about you? I've just arrived in town.
Oh. Well, thanks again, Jim.
If ever we can return the favor, let us know.
I'm looking for work, sir.
Ah. Well, these are hard times, Jim.
I know that, but I've got a place to keep up.
- Mmm. - I've lived on the land all my life,
so I can turn my hand to almost anything.
- And I've got a good stock horse. - Have you now?
Well, in that case, I suppose we'd better try and find you work then.
I'll give you a letter.
I know it's hidden under your skirt somewhere.
[ Rumbling] [Timbers Groaning]
Ya damned old trollop.
Twenty years-You seduce a man with a speck of gold dust.
Then you tempt him with a trace of color.
Nothin' but a harlot.
[Creaking, Rumbling]
Just like a woman.
Has to have the last word. [ Chuckles ]
[ Horse Blusters]
[ Rocks Falling ]
How'd you find this place? I tracked you.
[Laughs] You silly old galah.
You leave a trail like a one-legged seed drill.
Damn you, Clancy. Always sneakin' around.
No noise.
I heard noise.
- I heard voices. - Aha!
Sure sign of old age, when you start hearing things. [Laughs]
You and your partner still searching for El Dorado then?
Silent partner now.
Henry Craig's dead.
Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Yeah.
Just when good color was showin' too.
You've been saying that for near 20 years.
You know, the only way to shut that mouth is with some food.
Come on.
Been offering me food for 20 years too.
All I ever get's Wallaby stew.
- Bandicoot-[ Mutters ] - [ Laughs ]
[ Cowboy Whistles ]
Hey! Hey!
- [Harrison ] Mountain boy? - That's right, sir.
Curly. Cut the heifer out.
I'll give you a try.
Usual wages and keep. Make yourself known to the foreman.
Thank you, sir.
[ Birds Twittering ]
[Spur] Tasty, huh?
[ Clancy ] In a toxic, festering sort of way.
You should advertise this stuff in The Bullet.
The new miracle cure for appetite.
Boy, to think I was gonna leave you a share of the mine.
Thanks, mate, but I have my own rainbows to chase.
Yeah, Clancy's vision splendid. [ Chuckles ]
You still obsessed with those sunlit planes? Huh?
At least I get to see the sun- and the stars.
It's better than blundering around in a black hole...
looking for something that isn't there. Isn't there?
Now, you wait right here. I'll show you.
Blundering around in the dark, am I?
Well, wait'll you see this.
[ Chuckles ] Come here.
Take a look at this.
Huh?
Now, that's the kind of color I've been getting lately.
Hmm?
It's not much to show for 20 years.
You must have dug a trench all the way from California to southern Australia.
That's much better than anything I ever saw up there in '49.
Now, I put a drive straight through for 30 chains.
Now I go down, sink a shaft,
and we're smack on top of the richest vein.
Who's "we," Spur? Well, Henry Craig's boy.
You remember young Jim.
Yeah, the lad doesn't know it yet,
but he inherits his father's share, no matter what it is.
Craig, when you're finished here, you can muck out the stables.
Yes, sir.
Here.
He's a hard worker, that lad.
Yeah, seems willing enough.
I can't understand why the boss took him on though.
- He comes from the mountains. - That was a long time ago.
Morning, Mrs. Bailey.
Oh, g'day. I'm Jim Craig.
Pretty good at shovelin' that, aren't you? [Laughs]
Pretty smart for a mountain fella.
Usin' the flat end and everything. Yeah.
Live like bandicoots up in the hills.
You diggin' for grubs there, eh, bandicoot?
Have they given you the day off?
I'm studyin' to be supervisor.
Studying to be stupid.
[ Man Laughs]
What are you laughing at?
Morning, Miss Jessica. Morning.
Can I get Kip out for you? Saddle him up?
No, thank you.
I'll be about my duty then, miss.
Gettin' the hang of it, son?
Keep it up. I'll be back later to check on your work.
Kip.
What have you been up to, eh? [ Nickers ]
Eh?
[Jim Shoveling]
- Uh, can I help? - No, no. I can manage.
Show me how you did that.
Easy.
Like so. The ends through the loops.
[Laughs] There's a trick to that one.
There's no trick at all. [ Clicks Tongue ] Let me have a go.
Now-Like that? This hand up.
Uh-huh. That's right. Turn 'em in.
Mmm? That's right.
Pull it through? You've got it.
And this one goes through there? The others go through loops.
Pull. Pull!
Wrong. [Laughs]
What happened? I don't know.
[ Dog Barking ]
Craig.
Cool off the horse and stable him. Yes, sir.
Jessica.
It's called the tomfool's knot.
You're getting the hang of it.
I'll be back later to check on your work.
Why aren't you at your lessons?
One of the broodmares is foaling. She'll need a hand.
I didn't raise you to be a midwife to a herd of horses.
The men can handle that. I can do it better.
It's not an occupation for a lady.
A lady.
Yes, lady. Has the word become old-fashioned?
It's become an excuse to keep women under control.
Please spare me your aunt's feminist rubbish.
You should be thinkin' of marriage, children-
The well-known cattle breeder has a
breeding program for his daughter as well.
You keep a civil tongue in your head.
I don't understand where this rudeness comes from.
Uh, which bed's mine?
Any one that doesn't buck you off, boy. [ Men Laugh ]
That one's empty, son. It's yours if you want it.
You can keep your saddle in the tack room.
You can stop there yourself if you like.
Grow up, Curly.
Drop dead, ya old fart.
Watch your tongue, boy, while you still got one.
Deal the cards, Moss.
Uh, two.
They're starting the high country muster in a couple of days.
Gonna be early winter, according to Kane.
[ Man ] Oh?
Yep.
[ Man #2 ] I thought Harrison controlled the seasons.
I reckon the boss will hold the muster till Clancy gets here.
Who's he then? Some kind of top rider, this Clancy bloke?
No. No, he's no rider.
He's a horseman.
[ Laughing ] Hey, Curly, look at this.
God. What's so special about Clancy then?
I told you, he's a horseman.
A horseman? Clancy's not just a horseman.
Clancy's a— a magician.
He's a genius. I've met him.
When I was young. He and my father were mates.
[ Curly, Laughing] Mates? Bullshit.
- [ Moss] Mates! - Mates!
He doesn't have a bloody mate to save his life.
[All Laughing]
[Chattering, Laughing ]
[ Curly] Whoo! Mates!
Sorry. Beg your pardon, your honor. Mate to Clancy, eh?
Whoo-hoo! [ Laughing ] Mate to-
♪♪ [Humming]
[ Man ] Hey! Clancy's comin'!
[ Chattering ]
[ Harrison ] What's going on? Some kind of union meeting?
They've heard that Clancy's coming.
Ah. They've all come out to gawk at him, huh?
It's not often they get a chance to meet a legend.
♪♪ [Humming]
[ Dogs Barking ]
Jim Craig, isn't it?
Been a long time. Yes, sir.
I'll see to your horses.
Watch him. He's a hog for water.
Oh, Jim.
I was very sorry to hear about your father.
He was a good mate.
Clancy. Kane.
"Go west, young man," they said. "Go west."
So I did— 10,000 miles further than they intended.
[ Chuckles ] And I found gold... in beef cattle.
We made more money selling meat to the miners...
than they ever dug up in their claims.
Didn't we, Clancy? Well, you sold them. I only drove 'em.
He was known around the diggings as "the California horse trader."
[ Chuckles ] This is the finest trifle I've ever eaten, Mrs. Hume.
Oh, it's more than a trifle, Clancy.
It's a Charlotte russe. Charlotte russe!
My dear sister-in-law occasionally bestows on us simple bush people...
the fruits of her learning. And it's as well that I did, Harrison,
or Jessica would have been brought up with the kangaroos,
and we'd be dining tonight in a bark hut.
Rosemary, you never appreciate the sacrifices
made in building a property like this.
Would you pass the decanter, please?
Mr. Paterson?
I'm sorry. I didn't realize-
That women may also enjoy what custom deems is a man's privilege?
None of your speeches. Aunt Rosemary is quite right, Father.
Women should have the right to do anything they're capable of.
Do you hear that? The notion is like a germ.
My own daughter infected with your nonsense.
Your own daughter, as you well know, has a good mind.
She has a way with horses and an eye for stock breeding.
Now, would you have these gifts developed, or
would you condemn her to domestic dullness?
You should be in a ladies' college, and not in the stables.
Well, whatever the complexities of the argument, Mrs. Hume,
you're certainly proof that the legal profession's been denied...
the services of a great advocate.
Women lawyers? Ha. That'll be the day.
[ Clancy ] That such sweet libation should have fathered-
I am sorry, madam.
Mothered such a disputation. [ Chuckling ]
[ Harrison ] Rosemary, if you're finished with the port...
Quite.
Well, it's a far cry from the dark rum...
we used to drink on the track. Ah, yes.
Here's to those long-gone days on the trail.
Well, for me they're not long gone, so here's to their future.
Aw, there's no future there, Clancy.
I wouldn't swap the sunlit plains for all the tea in China.
They are a vision splendid.
Clancy! How romantic. Romantic? Your brain's gone soft.
We've got the railways and roads now.
Mr. Paterson, we can ship refrigerated beef to the markets of England, Europe.
That's where the future lies.
You were always a long way ahead of the old squatters...
- Squatters! - Which is why there are few left.
They tore the guts out of the country.
They tore the guts out of the country?
I see the clay when we'll be one of the great food-producing areas in the world.
And you have it all under control.
Yes, I have, except for those mountains, and
if I had the capital I'd run fences up there-
Praise be the lack of capital!
[ Both Talking ]
Ladies and gentlemen, may I propose a toast?
Uh, yes.
To our two romantics.
To one who sees what is, and one who sees what can be.
Lord grant that the two are compatible.
[ Both Laugh ]
[ Knocking ]
Mrs. Bailey said to bring some more firewood.
[ Clancy, Paterson ] Hello, Jim. Good evening, Jim.
- We all seem to be introduced. - Not all of us, Harrison.
- I'm Mrs. Hume. - How do you do, miss?
Jim, Mr. Harrison was just talking of taming the Snowy River country.
You know it better than any of us. What do you think?
Well, sir,
I think you might sooner hold back the tide than tame the mountains.
Excuse me then.
That boy has a quality about him. [ Door Closes ]
Yeah. The mongrel quality of the mountain people.
Does that include your brother?
I have no brother.
Well, we'll have an early start in the morning.
Good night.
"And Laban said unto him- ♪♪ [ Man Whistling ]
I pray thee if I have found favor in thine eyes, tarry:
for I have learned by experience...
that the Lord hath blessed me for thy sake.
And he said"
Here. Last time I saw a saddle like that...
[ Continues, indistinct] that was at a circus, you know?
Had a monkey ridin' on it. Where's your rope, Curly?
Give up?
Lads, I want everyone saddled and packed by sunrise.
We'll eat at the Perry homestead.
The only time the boss eats his own beef-
and he don't know it. [ Chuckles ] Yeah.
Anything special we've got to take?
There's been a change of plans.
You won't be going on this muster, Jim.
[Curly Laughs]
They probably seen that half-pint mule of yours, eh?
He's a mountain horse, and he knows that country even better than I do.
I don't make the orders,
but when I give 'em, that's the end of it.
"and all the brown cattle among the sheep"-
[ Indistinct]
[ Continues, Indistinct] Anyone not ready
to go by dawn gets their tail ends kicked.
"spotted cattle, and all the brown cattle among the sheep"-
You too, Short Man. Amen.
"And they were"...
[ Door Opens ] ♪♪ [ Piano: Classical ]
Mr. Kane?
Why? Why me?
I think I know.
You'll get your chance, Jim.
♪♪ [ Ends]
[ Clapping ]
[ Rooster Crows ]
Don't forget to feed the chooks, bandicoot.
[ Clicks Tongue ]
[ Imitates Chicken ]
[ Jessica, indistinct]
[ Harrison, indistinct]
Perhaps next time?
No, no way. [ Indistinct ]
Good-bye, Daughter.
[Chickens Clucking ]
[ Curly imitates Chicken, Laughs]
♪♪ ["Fur Elise" ]
♪♪ [ Stops ]
Really, Jessica, you're attacking that piece...
with all the sensitivity of a road mender.
Now let's begin again, shall we?
And this time con amore.
[Sighs] And spare me the affectations of martyrdom.
[ Knocking ] Come.
[ Rosemary] Ah. Hello, Jim. Ma'am.
Uh, Mrs. Bailey said I should bring this up to save her legs.
Your timing is Jessica's salvation.
Hello. Whoops.
Will you join us for tea?
No. I can't, Mrs. Hume. Oh, nonsense.
Male company will be a pleasant relief in this hothouse of female emotions.
Jessica, pour the tea. I'll get another cup.
Do you mind? Oh, no. Why should I?
Well,
we're both feeling sorry for ourselves today.
Neither is where we want to be.
Yeah.
I think they're trying to make a butler out of me.
[ Chuckles ] Well, they're trying to make a lady out of me.
- They won't have no luck. - Thank you very much.
Oh, hang on. That's not what I meant-
And they won't make a gentleman out of you either.
Do you play?
Yes. Just a bit.
Before my mum died she was starting to teach me.
Do you miss her?
Yeah.
Yeah, I miss her.
I never knew my mother.
I'm sorry.
I bet she was pretty.
Like you.
Oh, thank you, kind sir.
Well, thanks for the tea,
Jessica.
I've got a few jobs to finish before dinnertime.
♪♪ [ "Fur Elise", Smoothly ]
[ Indistinct]
There.
He's a pretty thing.
There's not a mean bone in his body.
Curly'll find one.
He does all the breaking round here.
Curly?
You've got to be firm with a young horse.
But not cruel. You work with a horse, not against him.
Really?
That's what my father taught me.
This is not just a mountain brumby.
[ Snickers ] It's no different.
Are you saying you could break this horse?
Yes.
Well?
What about your father?
He'll be away for more than a week.
If the job's done before he gets back, what can he say?
[ No Audible Dialogue]
♪♪ [ Piano: Ballad]
♪♪ [Continues]
♪♪ [ Ends]
[ Wind Whistling ]
[Whinnying]
[ Nickering ] Ooh there, boy. Hey.
[Whinnying]
Ooh.
Bess.
Jim, don't you dare!
[ Hoof-beats Approaching ]
Jim!
[ Panting ]
[ Groans ]
[Whinnying]
[ Birds Twittering ]
[Whinnying]
How's the head?
Mrs. Bailey told me this is your favorite.
What happened to the colt? We yarded him.
Is he all right? He's still a bit flighty, but not hurt, luckily.
There'll be hell to pay when your father finds out.
Well, he won't find out. We've all agreed not to tell him.
We? Who's we? Mrs. Bailey, Aunt Rosemary and I.
I'm not hidin' behind the skirts of a bunch of women.
Oh, I'm so sorry.
I must remember that next time you try to kill yourself.
That's nonsense, Jessica.
Well, somebody's got to save you from your own thoughtlessness.
Don't you Harrisons ever get tired of running other people's lives?
- You ungrateful— - 'Cause I'm gettin' tired of it.
Well, don't worry. That's the last time I'll stand up for the likes of you.
Jessica!
You are a foolish boy, Jim.
[ Door Closes ]
[ Cowboys Shouting ] [ Cattle Lowing ]
[ Cowboy Whistles ]
[ Dog Barks ]
How many missing? [ Kane ] Twenty at the last count.
Take your horse for you, Mr. Harrison?
Hey, where's the mountain boy? Uh, still in his bunk.
[ Man ] Get! Go on. Go on.
Craig?
You waiting for breakfast in bed?
What happened?
I came off the-off a horse.
Do you think you can get back on?
Pick up 20 strays we left up on top? Yes, sir.
Before those mountain men get their grubby hands on 'em.
It's good to be back. At least nothing changes up here.
Hmm.
I saw Bess again, with the brumbies. Nearly got her back.
I told you not to throw effort after foolishness.
Forget it.
How are things goin' on down there?
Not good. Mmm.
I'm working for a fella called Harrison.
He reminds me of someone.
You never told me you had a brother.
- You never asked. - Well, I'm askin' now.
You just concern yourself with Jim Craig.
Seems like all you Harrisons have got it in for me.
Have you seen Jessica?
Yeah.
What's she like?
She's a Harrison. Hmm.
I'm gettin' out after this muster.
Henry Craig's son quitting?
You sayin' I should stick it out?
You can learn more from Harrison than you know.
I'll be searching for his strays for weeks.
Not if you know where to look.
At the first hint of snow, every beast on this plateau heads for the bluff.
Warm pocket, good forage-
Gather 'em up with a butterfly net.
How do you know?
Well, I don't always eat Wallaby, son.
Huh?
"Grubby hands." [ Chuckles ] Harrison was right.
I'd say prime two-year-old Hereford-
Mm-hmm. fattenecl on mountain pasture.
Mmm.
- You might make a good cattleman yet. - [Both Laugh]
[ Harrison ] Cool off this horse and stable him.
Hmm. Come here.
Whoa.
What happened to the colt?
The wild horses came down. Ran through the place.
They set him off. I'm asking Jessica.
A bruise on the foreleg.
Black soil from the bottom paddock still on the hooves.
And a girth mark around the horse's belly. Huh?
You're an intelligent girl, Jessica.
What does that add up to, huh?
Your old friend is still alive.
The stallion.
He was leading the brumbies.
Who rode the colt?
We were breaking him in- We?
Jim's very good with horses. That mountain boy.
Now wait. It wasn't his fault.
He was riding it when the brumbies came down.
He went to save the stock horses. What stupidity.
To save stock horses worth a few shillings,
and risk a colt worth a thousand pounds?
You can't blame him for that. It happened too suddenly.
Well, suddenly he's finished here.
He gets off this place the moment he gets back.
There's a train tomorrow. Take Jessica with you.
Father, please-
You will board at the Presbyterian Ladies' College.
No. I won't go-
You're as deceitful as your mother.
You wouldn't dare break the spirit of that wretched colt...
the way you've just crushed your own daughter.
My daughter? Hmm.
You really believe that? Oh, when will you give up this obsession?
You tell me. Matilda's your sister.
You see other people so clearly, but look at yourself.
What if the night you fired those shots your aim had been better?
What then?
[ Thunder Rumbling ]
[ Chuckles ] Now all we needs a butterfly net.
[ Lowing ] [Jim Whistles]
Giddap, girls.
[ Whistles ] Giddap.
Giddap, girls.
[ Wind Whistling ]
[ Thunder Rumbling ]
[ Mooing ]
[Fire Crackling]
[ Thunder Rumbling ]
[ Wind Whistling ]
[Groaning]
[Nickers, Whinnies]
[ Moaning ] [ Thunderclap ]
No!
- [ Whinnies] - Aah!
[ Thunderclap ]
I don't understand. She's never done anything like this before.
[ Thunder Rumbles ]
They've been drinking since they got back with the cattle.
The weather turning bad, we gotta find her quick.
They're not gonna be any use to us.
What?
The men are drunk. They won't be any use to us.
I want them ready to ride in 10 minutes.
Yes, sir.
[ Rooster Crows ] All right. Up. He wants all men.
Moss, you got five minutes to be dressed and outside.
Curly. Curly!
God save us.
Come on, old man. I need you. It was him or me.
You better be careful what you say in your sleep.
Now, Jessica's gone and got herself lost.
I need a tracker, and you're it.
I can't even see to find my boots. Well, come without them.
Five minutes!
[ Rock Clatters ]
[ Screams ]
[ Lowing ]
Whoa. [ Blusters ]
[ Thunder Rumbling ]
Boss, the men are exhausted.
And there's a storm coming up. And my daughters out there in it.
In a few minutes, we're not gonna be able to see anything.
Then stay here and rot.
Kip? Jessica?
[Echoes] Jessica? Jessica!
[ Echoing ] Jessica! Jessica!
Hyah! [ Mooing ]
[ Breathing Heavily]
Boss, there's no hope of finding any tracks after all that rain.
Better keep looking.
Jessica!
[Echoes] Jessica!
Jess! [Echoes] Jess!
Jessica! [Echoes] Jessica!
Jess! [Echoes] Jess!
Help!
Help me! [Echoes]
Oh, help.
Jess? [Echoes] Jess?
So that's it, eh?
No more workin' for the old— your father.
[ Chuckles ] I never thought I'd be sorry about that,
but I am.
Why are you sorry?
I'll miss seeing you.
You won't miss seeing me, 'cause I'm not going back.
Come on, Jess. You can't— No, listen.
When I was trapped on that cliff, I was terrified,
but that passed, and...
I started to see things very clearly.
All I wanted was to see you again— to be with you.
Nothing else.
And so I hung on until you came.
Jess, I-
I have to take you back.
But I'm not going back. They'll be worried sick about you.
I don't care.
There'll be men out lookin' for you, riskin' their lives.
Anyhow, I've gotta get the cattle down.
- Haven't you been listening to me? - Yeah.
It's just that...
I have to finish this job.
I'll take you to Spur's place and come back for the cattle.
I'm sorry.
It's just everything seemed so clear to me.
I'm sorry.
[ Exhales ] It's so peaceful here.
It's like we're the only two people on Earth.
You ready then?
[ Wind Whistling ]
Oh, Jim, it's— it's beautiful.
[ Thunder Rumbles]
But wait till that gets here.
It changes so suddenly, doesn't it?
One minute it's like paradise, and...
the next, it's trying to kill you.
Yep. That's how it can be up here.
But, uh,
if it was easy to get to know, there'd be...
no challenge.
You've gotta treat the mountains...
like a high-spirited horse.
Never take them for granted.
It's the same with people too.
[ Wind Whistling ]
Gone.
Nothing. No color.
Jezebel!
[ Groans ]
Lovely creature.
That's what you've been trying to tell me all of these years, huh?
That you're up here. [ Chuckles ]
[ Hoof-beats Approaching ]
Spur.
Spur!
Damn. What a strange place.
Who is this Spur?
I thought you knew him.
Well, why should I?
You wait here. I'll check down at the creek.
Spur?
Hello?
[ Hoof-beats Passing ]
Well, he's not down there.
[ Spur ] Jim? Jim Craig!
Jim, my boy! They said old Spur was mad, huh?
Mad, huh? Yahoo! Are you all right?
[ Spur] I never felt better in my life! Hi-
Matilda.
I found the gold.
I'm Jessica. Jessica Harrison.
Oh, Jessica.
- You've grown up. - Jess,
this is Spur.
And, uh, he's your uncle— Your father's brother.
One of life's injustices. You never get to choose your own relatives.
Uncle?
Let this be a lesson to you, Jim.
I find a little bit of gold, and suddenly,
after all these years, the relatives turn up, huh? [ Chuckles ]
Why do you keep this portrait of my mother?
Uh-
Well, the prettiest visitor I've ever had and not even a cup of tea. Come on.
What are you trying to hide from me?
I'm not a child.
Uh, Jessica,
uh-
[ Sighs ] There's a lot of pain...
and suffering when you try to dig up the past.
Look, Spur.
Jess has to get home, and I've gotta go back for the cattle.
Can you take her down? Sure. Sure.
You look after her for me then.
Oh, I'll look after her, like you were my own daughter.
I won't be far behind you.
And don't touch his wallaby stew. Why, you ungrateful tyke!
There'll be no wallaby tonight.
I'll kill the fatted calf.
Come to think of it, I already have.
[ Chuckles ]
[ Lowing ] Hyah.
[ Whipcracks ]
[Whipcracks Continue ] Come on.
[ Lowing ]
[ Bird Squawking]
[ Match Strikes ]
It was silly, I suppose, but I was so angry.
Yeah. And then I couldn't think of anything else but seeing Jim.
No harm done. What's the sense of being young
if you can't be impulsive now and then, huh?
Now, the tablecloth. No expense spared,
and you can read the news while you're eating.
Aha.
They charge you three guineas excess for the cobwebs down in the city.
Glasses? On the shelf.
Oh, these must be quite valuable.
Matched pair. They're both broken. [ Chuckles ]
Jessica, take this plate and follow me to the cool room.
Now for the piéce de résistance.
Ah. You raise beef. Oh, well-known for it.
Small, modest herd...
made up of poor creatures who've lost their way.
And, uh, "H" is for-
Uh, "homeless." [Laughs]
[ Mutters ]
Thank God she's safe.
Where is she?
She's on her way home.
[Crickets Chirping ]
[ Cattle Lowing ]
[ Horse Blusters]
[ Jessica's Voice ] Why haven't I ever been told about Spur?
Well, was my mother unfaithful or-
Oh, nonsense girl. Was she?
What did Spur tell you? Nothing.
Aunt Rosemary, please.
About 20 years ago,
two brothers fell in love with the prettiest girl in the district.
Oh, she was young, and life for Matilda was like childish games.
Well, both the men wanted her hand in marriage,
but she couldn't choose between them,
so she decided that the first one to make his fortune would be her husband.
[ Chuckles ] She hadn't the faintest idea...
what chain of events that would set in motion.
Well, one of the men scraped all his savings
together and gambled in one bold throw-
a horse named Pardon in the Cup.
It won at 50-to-1. He was wealthy.
Father.
And Spur?
He went looking for gold.
[ Wind Howling ]
My dear Mrs. Bailey, tell me,
by what magic did you transform this humble farmyard chicken...
into such delicate ambrosia, hmm?
[ Chuckles ] You do go on.
And you gave me my favorite piece too.
Oh? A plump breast.
Unless it be tenderloin.
Ooh! Ooh, ooh.
Mrs. Bailey. Oh, you're a cruel woman, Mrs. Bailey!
Dear! I'm sorry. Are you all right?
Ooh, the moment I walked in here, I said to myself...
this is a woman...
to satisfy a man's appetites. [ Door Opens ]
I didn't expect you for a while.
[ Chuckles ] So I see.
How's Jessica? She's fine.
Uh, Spur was, uh, just helping me get her supper ready.
Ah. You're still here.
Well, you'd better not be when your brother gets back. We're on our way.
I'm too old to play the prodigal son.
Uh, thank you, Mrs. Bailey.
And come on, Jim. After I see Jess.
Hey, I think we'd better be going.
We'll let the weather clear a bit. I want to see her.
[ Thunder Rumbles]
Hyah.
[ Dogs Barking ]
[ Barking Continues]
[ Knocks] Yes?
[ Dogs Barking ] [ Footsteps Approaching ]
[ Barking Continues]
Forgive me?
You're back.
My thanks to you for my daughter's safe return.
Kane speaks highly of you, says you'll make a good cattleman.
I've got a few ideas.
Well, maybe I can be of some help to you.
It's time we had a talk.
You just rest, Jess.
Come.
[ Door Closes ]
[Crickets Chirping ]
When did you find Jessica?
Yesterday morning.
[Clock Ticking ] Oh.
Sit down.
You're very fond of my daughter, huh?
I love her.
Hmm. Love.
It's a goddamn strange sort of love.
Well, would you call it love to take a girl who'd been brought up to this...
and put her in a bark hut, hmm?
We'd make do. Living on air?
Watch her grow old with hard work and childbearing?
I'd look after her. Mm-hmm.
Anyway, why don't you ask her? The decision is yours!
If you've a spark of manhood in you, you know
the right thing for you to do is to walk away!
Now hang on! You're not the only one who can make something out of life.
I've got plans for my own place.
Then make your plan with someone else's daughter.
I didn't carve this place out of the bush...
to see Jessica run off with the first fortune hunter to come along!
You bastard! [ Spur ] Jim!
How dare you come in this house.
My long-lost brother. Didn't recognize you without a gun.
Get out.
Gun? What is going on?
Come on, Jessica. Back to bed.
No. I'm sick of secrets.
I want to know.
Jessica, get to bed! And both of you, get outta here, or I'll...
You'll what?
Blow off the other one? [ Rosemary ] Spur, please.
I only shot to warn you off.
I'd hate to be around if your intentions were serious.
Father.
Tell me what happened.
Jessica, go to bed. No. I have a right to know!
Oh, for heaven's sake, Harrison.
Let's get this thing out of the way once and for all.
Spur gave your mother a wedding present, a young colt-
Old Regret's first foal-
but your father couldn't stand the thought
of another man giving her anything.
I wanted to shoot the animal, but... I couldn't.
Well, I'm glad to see you draw the line somewhere.
Your mother feared for the horse, and she turned it loose.
Spur saw it running free, and he came to tell her,
and your father found them together.
Oh, it was all quite innocent, but...
your father was in a rage, and Spur was shot.
Matilda decided to leave. Enough!
In a way, she did go of her own accord,
when you were born.
You're more a part of this, Jim, than you realize.
Matilda's colt is now the old stallion.
He leads the brumbies.
Now, who's to judge a man the rest of his life for one impetuous act?
It happened a long time ago.
I want to forget it, bear no malice.
Hey, don't worry. It's just the beginning, not the end.
[ Thunder Rumbles]
[Sighs]
Well- Spur.
Hmm?
I haven't had so much feminine attention in years.
I like it. [ Chuckles ]
I'm leavin' too.
- Then I'm coming with you. - No.
It couldn't work, Jess.
[ Dogs Barking ] [Animals Squawking]
Ah, that's nice. You've come to open the gate for your crippled brother.
You've said enough tonight.
Turning Jessica against me,
just as you did Matilda years ago.
You misjudge the girl, just as you did her mother.
- Whose child is she? - [ Chuckles ] Ah.
Poor Mr. Harrison.
You owe me the truth.
If you really knew Matilda, you could never ask that.
[Thunder Rumbling ]
Of course she's yours,
but you don't deserve her.
Hyah.
Ah, bandicoot. Oh.
So you're movin' up to the big house, boy, eh?
What, did you... did you break in more than the
colt while you were up on that muster, eh?
[ Chuckles ] Did you have to use your spurs, boy?
[ Groans ]
You've got the mind of a gutter rat, Curly.
[ Shouts ]
- [ Glass Shatters] - Curly!
- Lose the bottle. - [ Cocks ]
I did it before, and so help me, I'll do it again.
[ Bottle Shatters ]
[ Groans ]
[Groaning] [Groans]
You son of a- [ Groans ]
[ Dogs Barking ]
A man can be hard to find in the mountains.
You're welcome at my fire anytime.
[ Door Closes ]
[ Curly] That horse is worth £1,000, Moss.
You know how much money that is, eh?
You know how much money? Huh? Oh, yeah.
Yeah? That's more than you'd earn in a lifetime workin' for that prig Harrison.
Yeah. Well, I'm gonna fix him.
[Whinnies]
[ Chuckles ] That fixed him.
Who?
The bandicoot, you idiot. They'll think he did that.
[ Mutters ]
[ Horses Whinnying ]
Whoa. Well, it's definite.
We found clean tracks. The colt's joined the brumby mob.
Well, at least he's not been stolen. Somebody set him loose.
No prizes guessing who.
Every man from every station about will be here by morning.
Did you find Clancy? Not as yet.
Well, get him. That man's part bloodhound.
We'll get the colt back, boss.
[ Wind Howling ]
[ Bird Squawking ] [Jim] No, thanks.
[ Spur] You don't drink with your partner?
Partner? The gold mine.
Your father always had a half share in it.
It's yours now. [ Chuckles ]
Do you reckon there's enough in it for two?
You better have a drink.
It may be the only thing you ever get out of the partnership. [ Chuckles ]
In that case- [ Chuckles ]
[Sighs]
[ Howls]
[Coughs] [ Laughing]
Jesus, Clancy. You're gonna give me a heart seizure.
You never could hear anyone else when you were doin' the talkin', mate.
[Chuckles] G'day, Jim.
Thought I'd find you here,
staring at the mountains.
Yep.
Only place I'll ever feel at home.
Aren't you headin' in the wrong direction?
No.
Headin' back to Harrison's. Demon for punishment.
Somebody let Harrison's colt go.
What? The colt from Old Regret?
He's joined the brumbies.
There's a mob of us goin' after him in the morning.
I thought you might wanna be in it.
Well, they said you were, uh, good with a horse.
What's the first thing you do when a horse bucks you off?
You don't let him beat you. You get straight back on.
Well?
No, Clancy.
Oh, well, that's a shame.
Harrison's blaming you for it.
Why? Me?
And you expect me to go back and help him?
It's askin' too much of a man.
"Man," did you say?
That's what my father raised me to be. Ah, yes.
I often think of Henry Craig.
He was a good man.
Well, maybe it's just as well.
[ Clancy] Yeah, they probably wouldn't let him ride with us anyway.
[Spur] No.
[ Dog Barking ] [ Chattering ]
[ No Audible Dialogue]
[ Chattering ]
[ Man ] Right.
[Men Chuckling]
[Horse Whinnies]
[ Chattering ]
[ No Audible Dialogue]
[ Dog Barking ] [Horse Whinnies]
[ Chattering ]
Where's Clancy? He's not here.
Damn it.
We can't wait.
Gentlemen,
I appreciate the speed with which you responded to my call.
My colt- the colt from Old Regret-
is running with the most cunning mob that ever crossed the ranges.
Now, we must be careful.
I've positioned scouts to send up flares...
as soon as they're sighted.
Now-Whoa. [ Hoof-beats Approaching ]
Thank you, Clancy.
I need your help. I'm ready.
Look at him.
Come to survey his handiwork. Kane!
If he'd done it, he wouldn't be here.
You believe that? Get him off my property.
Yes, sir.
[Men Chuckling] Hold it!
Both he and his horse are mountain-bred.
I think he should come along.
[ Harrison ] We don't need him. I asked him.
- You did what? - I want him along.
As you wish.
He'll dig his own grave.
You ride with me.
Come on.
Gentlemen,
there will be a reward to be divided among you as you like...
when the colt is recovered.
£100.
[All Cheering, Shouting]
[All Whistling, Shouting]
[ Man Whistles ]
Hey.
Mrs. Bailey!
Whoa.
- All the men have just left. - Well, where'd they go?
Oh. [Laughs]
Oh, I so wanted to go with 'em,
but somebody's gotta stay here and look after the womenfolk.
Right? [ Laughs ]
[Birds Chirping]
[ Horse Whinnying]
How's he pulling up, Jim?
Raring to go. Thanks for your help.
[Gunshot]
[ Nickers ]
[ Hoof-beats Rumbling ]
[ Man Shouting, Faint]
Clancy, wheel 'em to the right.
No fancy riding. Go at them from the jump.
[All Shouting]
[Whinnies]
[ Whipcracks ]
[ Whipcrack ]
[ Nickers ]
[Whinnies]
[ Nickers ]
[ Whipcrack ]
[ Groans ]
[Groaning]
Hyah! Hyah!
Whoa! Hey!
[ Man ] Hey, Curly! [ Indistinct]
- [ Laughing ] - [ Chattering ]
Wait for me!
Hup. [ Hisses]
[ Whipcrack ]
You can bid the mob good day.
[ Whipcrack ]
Look!
[ Whipcrack ]
[ Nickering ]
[Chickens Clucking ]
[ Dogs Barking ] [Animals Squawking]
[ Barking Continues] [ Squawking Continues]
[ Cow Lowing ] [ Horse Blusters ]
Where's Jim?
- [ Hoof-beats Approaching ] - [ Man] Glory be!
Will you look at that!
[Horse Whinnies]
[ Whipcrack ]
Hyah! [ Whinnying ]
[ Shouting ]
[ Whipcrack ]
Hyah!
[ Whipcrack ]
[ Whipcracks ]
[ Laughing]
[Whinnying]
[ Blusters ]
[ Horses Whinnying ]
[ Hoof-beats Departing ]
Craig.
I promised a hundred pounds.
It's yours.
That's not why I rode.
There are a dozen good broodmares in that mob.
I'll be back for them.
And for whatever else is mine.
I don't like to repeat myself. She's not for you.
Jessica can make up her own mind about that.
You've got a long way to go yet, lad.
He's not a lad, Brother.
He's a man.
He's a man!
The man from Snowy River.
Whoo-hoo!