The Last Wave

The Last Wave

SOC 118 "The Last Wave"-Peter Weir dir.(1977)

In the film, The Last Wave, the director is trying to communicate the idea of a culture within a culture or sub culture. The dominant culture in the film is the white members of society living in Australia. The subculture in the film is the Aborigines who were natives to the land before the white people settled in Australia. The natives sustained their cultural beliefs and ideologies while living in largely populated cities. The dominant white culture imposes their laws , ideas of societal values and moral beliefs on the native

Aborigines. Forcing them to abide by a different law system and way of life than what their peoples have practiced for hundreds of years. In the movie the lawyer, David, represents the dominant culture to the Aborigines because he represents the law that is controlling their fate in the white culture.

The director is also giving us many symbols or visual communication such as the consistency of water in the film as well as, the overbearing control of darkness. The film is shot in shadows and overall is very dark , almost forcing us to look beyond the obvious plot and storyline and into the meaning or what the film/director is trying to tell us. The darkness in the film can be seen as unconsciousness. It can also be seen as a prediction of the darkness that will occur in the world when the last wave comes. The last wave meaning a giant tidal wave that will cover the earth , killing humanity. This idea is similar to the Christian belief in the flood that was sent down centuries ago to destroy all the evil in the world. Also, all the modern aspects of the movie (courtroom,

David's office..etc) are filmed in light. While, all of the Aborigines' scenes are filmed in darkness or shadows. Giving me the impression of something mysterious or not understood by the whites concerning the Aborigines. The fact that all the modern scenes are filmed in light can also support the idea of the white culture being the predominate culture in the film but yet not dominant enough to take away the shadows(mysterious , mystical)aspect of the Aborigines.

The lawyer, David, Also goes through a series of dreams and premonitions.

This is stressing the idea of mind power and mystical strength that the

Aborigines have. In that way they can be seen as the dominant culture. David is stuck between two worlds. The world he knows and understands and the other world that he is definitely a part of but does not understand.