A Cry In The Dark (1988)

Average rating

(65%)

Starring:	Meryl Streep \| Sam Neill \| Nick Tate \| Charles Tingwell \| Bruce Myles \| Lewis Fitz-Gerald
Director:	Fred Schepisi
Studio:	MGM ENTERTAINMENT
Run time:	116 mins
Genres:	Drama
Languages:	English
Dubbed:	French, German, Italian, Spanish
Hearing-impaired:	English, German
Subtitles:	Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, Greek, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish
Released:	June 23, 2003
Also available on:

Meryl Streep and Sam Neill star in this documentary style film adaptation of the true story of Lindy and Michael Chamberlain, an Australian couple who lived the nightmare of losing their infant daughter during a family camping trip. When Lindy (Streep) spies a dingo nearby, authorities launch a frantic search, but all they find is a torn, bloodied garment. The press, distressed by the mother's seeming lack of emotion, and suspicious of her strict Seventh Day Adventist religious beliefs, begin to accuse her of murdering the baby. The sentiment against her begins to grow, and soon the whole continent is talking about the case in a malicious witch hunt. Despite the lack of evidence, Lindy Chamberlain is imprisoned; although investigators eventually reexamine her story, the damage is done: the innocent mother's relationship with her husband has been irreparably destroyed and she has spent over three years in prison for a crime she did not commit. This painful portrayal of the power of public opinion and political and emotional persecution is captured with steely intensity by Streep, she is captivating as the much-maligned victim of social injustice who is bolstered by her strong religious faith and stoic demeanour.

Rating of 4 stars out of 5

This is an absolutely riveting and at times harrowing telling of the bizarre real-life story of Lindy Chamberlain, who claimed her baby was killed by a dingo at Ayers Rock in 1980. The movie covers a huge amount of ground: Aboriginal myths, the Chamberlains' Seventh Day Adventism, the media circus and the way the case challenged the legal system and obsessed Australians for years. Meryl Streep was cast as Lindy because Streep then tended to get most major parts. But her performance, in a black wig and with a wholly convincing accent, is one of her best, a portrait of a tough, humourless woman who eventually earns our sympathy and pity. Sam Neill as her morose preacher husband is equally impressive. The material could have made for a dreadfully insincere TV movie, but Fred Schepisi's direction is clear-headed and unsensational, and the result is a great achievement for Schepisi and producer Verity Lambert.

Rating of 1 stars out of 5
Halliwell's Film Guide