Al Shaw's life revolves around motor racing and his back country junkyard, the "Smash Palace". His French wife, Jacqui, doesn't appreciate the lack of attention due to Al's obsession with cars. When Al finds her in the arms of another man, he takes his daughter, Georgie and heads for the bush, desperately hoping to hold on to the only family he has left.

review:

-The late Bruno Lawrence is the star of the movie, a rather complex performance on the whole. There's a lot to the acting parts, all well played by Anna Maria Monticelli, Keith Aberdein, and especially Greer Robson as the daughter. The scenery is very beautiful, and the movie is often great just to look at. Overall, this film has a very honest approach, and the matter-of-fact portrayal of sex and nudity may be surprising to some who are used to newer, tamer film-making. One of the things that I most appreciated was the tension and suspense of the screen writing, which opts out of big scenes of destruction for smaller-scale human conflict.

Director Roger Donaldson has interested me for quite some time. Don't let his long (and sometimes mediocre) absence from the New Zealand film industry fool you, because he is quite a capable director with the right material.


cast:
Bruno Lawrence ... Al Shaw
Anna Maria Monticelli ... Jacqui Shaw (as Anna Jemison)
Greer Robson ... Georgie Shaw
Keith Aberdein ... Ray Foley
Desmond Kelly ... Tiny
Lynne Robson ... Linda
Margaret Umbers ... Rose
Sean Duffy ... Frank
Bryan Johnson ... 2nd Police Officer
Terence Donovan ... Traffic Officer
Dick Rollo ... Uncle Arthur
Ian Barber ... Fight Leader
Mike Beytagh ... Armed Offenders' Squad
Brian Chase ... Armed Offenders' Squad
Ross Davies ... Armed Offenders' Squad

Country:New Zealand
Language:English | French
Release Date:30 April 1982 (USA)
Also Known As:Ei onnea ilman sinua
Filming Locations:Horopito, Manawatu-Wanganui, New Zealand
Runtime:108 min
Sound Mix:Mono
Color:Color