The Silver Brumby (film)

The Silver Brumby is a 1993 Australian family drama film based on the Silver Brumby series of novels by Elyne Mitchell.

Directed by John Tatoulis. Produced by Colin South and John Tatoulis. Written by Elyne Mitchell and Jon Stephens.

The magic of the mountain. The obsession of a man. The beauty of the Silver Brumby.taglines

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Elyne Mitchell

Thanks to Bel Bel, Thowra escaped from his first encounter with Man. But it certainly wasn't to be his last. Thowra didn't realize that he'd become a challenge, a prize, to be pursued and attained at all costs.
Bel Bel led Thowra back to the territory of their own herd and the protection of the mighty stallion Yarraman.
Yarraman was the finest, strongest stallion of all the herds of the high country. He was the King of the Cascade brumbies and now, just when he was needed, he was here to protect his handsome, but still foolish, son and his favorite mare.
Every summer, men returned to the High Country. Every summer they came with their wide horned red and white cattle, their dogs and their pack horses. To man the high country was a pasture, a summer home, a relief from the heat of the plains. It was a place of beauty, and a source of income. To most of the bush creatures the wallabies, wombats, possums and kangaroos, man was a nuisance, an intruder. But to the wild brumbies the arrival of Man meant the arrival of danger.
They fought on and on and as the darkness raced from the shadows of the setting sun, it took with it the strength of the older Yarraman, lord of the Cascade brumbies. As Thowra looked on he knew this would be his proud father's final battle. The Brolga was at his peak and his stamina could not be matched. Thowra also knew that one day the mountains would ring loud with his cries and the earth would carry his blood as he fought to win back a kingdom.
It was quite usual for one stallion to defeat another. Defeat yes. But not kill. But Yarraman was too great a horse to simply be defeated, so The Brolga had left him to die.
As the cold nights and the first frosts marked the ending of summer the men began to muster their cattle and with them went the immediate danger. And with them went more stories about the mystical silver brumby and more tales of his deeds and his daring.
The Man went too, without his precious Golden. But Thowra knew he'd be back to get her. Especially now she was in foal to him. Unlike the other brumbies, Golden was not used to the harsh conditions of winter in the high country. Especially for her sake Thowra kept his small herd moving in search of better pastures.
When the good weather returned no one realized that Golden, having been with men all her life till Thowra captured her, was lacking in the instinct to take the stirrings of her unborn foal calmly. At the last moment Golden left the herd to seek the comfort and protection of her old master.
It would not be a fight to the death for both were magnificent stallions in the prime of their lives. It would be a fight for supremacy, a fight to stay on in the Cascades as King, or leave as the vanquished never to return.
And it was The Brolga who bowed to the youth and grace of Thowra relinquishing his place to the younger son of brave Yarraman.
For years to come men around campfires, women at country shows, children in schools will tell stories of a great silver brumby seen galloping on windpacked snow. Of a ghost horse drinking at the Crackenback River. Of a horse that everyone thought was dead appearing in a blizzard at Dead Horse Gap and vanishing again. Of the wild stallion cry that could only be Thowra's. But no human really knows where the son of Bel Bel roams. Thowra, the greatest brumby of them all.

Egan "The Man"

Where's little creamy, Cooley?
How many did we get Murray?
Two hundred.
She came back to me, silver horse! [laughing]
Just ignore him.
I've got your daughter now, silver devil!
Let's just go and have a look around? Ever get the feeling you're being watched Echo?
I'll teach you to play with me horse.
Golden. Home, Echo, home!
I’ll get you! I swear! I will get you!
I've been waiting for you, Darcy.

Dialogue

[On Stormy night]

Elyne Mitchell: Jock?

Jock: Yeah.

Elyne Mitchell: Is everything all right?

Jock: You had a break in the fence down the track a bit. Me and Egan stuck some dead branches in it. Should hold it for a while. We were worried you wouldn't find the break, what with Tom being away and that. You could've lost quite a few cattle. What we did should home 'em I reckon, at least 'till they arrive anyway.

Elyne Mitchell: Would you like to come in?

Jock: No, thanks anyway. Best be gettin' ourselves home, I reckon. If you need us at all you call alright?

Elyne Mitchell: Okay, Jock.

Jock: Okay, go in, go in.

Elyne Mitchell: Now shut out all other sounds, and concentrate. Concentrate on the wind. Listen. Not for the sound of the wind, but for what you hear on the wind. Listen closely. There's been talk about Thowra for a long time now. Some say he lives. Some say he never existed. Some say he's a ghost. But always there are tales of the mighty wild stallion. The great palomino Brumby. King of all the Cascade brumbies.

Elyne Mitchell: It was on a night very like this, not so very long ago. It was one of the wildest spring nights that there has ever been. No possums stirred, no wombats left their holes. Only a few kangaroos, their last shelter destroyed, were braving the fury of the storm. And Bel Bel, a wild mountain brumby beautiful and wise, who was preparing to give birth to a foal. There was something mysterious and exciting in the wind. Something important was about to happen. Thowra she named him, for Thowra means wind. She named him for the wild wind in which he was born.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] By morning the storm had blown itself out and in the calm light of dawn, Bel Bel emerged from her shelter to coax her young creamy foal into the vastness of his new world. The creamy, with the silver mane and tail. Thowra would not be able to hide in the gray green of the bush like the other brumbies. He would have to rely on his speed and cunning and all the knowledge and wisdom that Bel Bel his mother could pass on to him.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] It wasn't long before Thowra decided to put his new knowledge into practice. He began to track some strange horses. He kept well hidden as he followed the hoof marks towards the grazing grounds of a fierce, gray stallion known as The Brolga. Because he'd always been by her side, Bel Bel had not yet taught Thowra the danger of trespassing onto the territory of another herd. Especially not that of The Brolga. The Brolga would never be as fast as the wind, nor would he be as graceful a dancer as the bird for whom he was named. But he was already showing signs of what he would be, an ugly determined fighter, never resting till he got what he wanted.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] Bel Bel led Thowra back to the territory of their own herd and the protection of the mighty stallion Yarraman. Yarraman was the finest, strongest stallion of all the herds of the high country. He was the King of the Cascade brumbies and now, just when he was needed, he was here to protect his handsome, but still foolish, son and his favorite mare.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] Every summer, men returned to the High Country. Every summer they came with their wide horned red and white cattle, their dogs and their pack horses. To man the high country was a pasture, a summer home, a relief from the heat of the plains. It was a place of beauty, and a source of income. To most of the bush creatures the wallabies, wombats, possums and kangaroos, man was a nuisance, an intruder. But to the wild brumbies the arrival of Man meant the arrival of danger.

[Egan and Cooley spots the herd of brumbies]

Egan: Where's little creamy, Cooley?

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] Winter was bad that year. Icy cold and constant snow. Pools frozen solid and winter pastures hidden cruelly beneath the ghostly white blanket.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] It was cold, so very cold. Even with the thick winter coats the horses had all grown. Winter was the only time the brumbies were safe from man. But their new enemies were the elements and the cruel face of nature. Winter called on all their knowledge of the bush and all their instincts for survival. Bel Bel knew which were the good shrubs to eat and showed Thowra where to find them. Neither Bel Bel nor Thowra suffered too badly that winter. Others did.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] The severity of the winter troubled Yarraman. Even his secret winter pastures were covered with snow which forced him to make a difficult choice. If he kept his herd safe in the High Country, they would starve. If he led them down lower to find feed near the snowline, they'd be dangerously close to Man. And wherever they went, other stallions, equally desperate, would stand their ground to protect their territory. For the wild brumbies this was the reality of winter survival.

Elyne: What's the matter?

Indi: It's just so cruel.

Elyne: The horse breaking?

Indi: Yes.

Elyne: I'm not sure if Jock's way is the only way.

Indi: But how can they do it, Mum? Be so mean to such a beautiful horse?

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] With the passing of two winters Thowra had grown from a gangly colt to one of the finest young stallions ever seen in the high country. He had learnt well the ways of the bush and strutted his independence with confidence and daring. His glistening coat and flowing silver mane set him apart from all the other brumbies. Wise Bel Bel's prediction had come true, he was a prize indeed. And wherever Thowra went soon after The Man would appear. Always on his black horse. Always his whip and dog. Always seeking Thowra. Determined. Persistent. But Thowra, reveling in the joy and vigor of life thought he was too smart for The Man and loved to lead him a merry dance through the snowgums. On and on half glimpsed through the dappled light but always a step or a jump ahead of the black horse.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] The passing of time also heralded The Brolga's growth to full maturity and in the glory of a new spring he declared his challenge to the mighty Yarraman's supremacy.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] They fought on and on and as the darkness raced from the shadows of the setting sun, it took with it the strength of the older Yarraman, lord of the Cascade brumbies. As Thowra looked on he knew this would be his proud father's final battle. The Brolga was at his peak and his stamina could not be matched. Thowra also knew that one day the mountains would ring loud with his cries and the earth would carry his blood as he fought to win back a kingdom.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] It was quite usual for one stallion to defeat another. Defeat yes. But not kill. But Yarraman was too great a horse to simply be defeated, so The Brolga had left him to die.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] After the death of Yarraman, The Brolga inherited his herd, including the wise mare Bel Bel. Thowra was now truly alone. But the spirit of the wind and the rugged mountains embraced him as if he were a son of the high country itself. Soon he had a herd of his own to protect and defend. A handful of fillies and mares he had fought for and won from other young stallions who roamed the bush. And soon he would long for another, one who would tempt him through the cunning of man.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] As the cold nights and the first frosts marked the ending of summer the men began to muster their cattle and with them went the immediate danger. And with them went more stories about the mystical silver brumby and more tales of his deeds and his daring. The Man went too, without his precious Golden. But Thowra knew he'd be back to get her. Especially now she was in foal to him. Unlike the other brumbies, Golden was not used to the harsh conditions of winter in the high country. Especially for her sake Thowra kept his small herd moving in search of better pastures.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] When the good weather returned no one realized that Golden, having been with men all her life till Thowra captured her, was lacking in the instinct to take the stirrings of her unborn foal calmly. At the last moment Golden left the herd to seek the comfort and protection of her old master.

[Thowra neighs and whinnies]

Egan: [laughs] She came back to me, silver horse! [laughing cracking]

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] Thowra, deliberately just keeping ahead, led The Man a long way often letting him almost catch up, so that the man thought he was gaining ground. But Thowra knew what he was doing and never let The Man have a chance of getting too close.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] As Thowra led The Man further and further away from the hut even the elements combined to thwart the Mans pursuit. As the light began to fade and the clouds gathered, the wind as if summoned to his assistance carried across the high country the enveloping mist and rain. This was what Thowra wanted. Disappearing like a ghost into the mist and rain.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] The Man did not at first realize he had lost Thowra and was almost lost himself. He also failed to understand how the gathering storm had been summoned by Thowra, the wild horse, named for the wind that blew across the high plains.

Egan: Golden. Home Echo, home!

Egan: I’ll get you! I swear! I will get you! [sobs and groans] [screaming]: NNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! [echoes, moans]

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] Thowra kept a careful watch over Golden and the foal that summer and as winter approached he felt confident the threat of Man had passed. After searching fruitlessly for Golden and her creamy foal. The Man had left the mountains his hut stood empty and silent in the morning sunlight. No smoke from a chimney, No barking of dogs. Thowra knew he will not return until spring.

[Thowra's herd spots The Brolga towards them]

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] But Thowra and his herd were not to be left in peace for long. The Brolga seized the opportunity to increase his own herd by stealing Thowra's mares. But Thowra sensed the danger and hurried back. The Brolga was forced to return to his own grounds empty handed. But Thowra knew it was now time for the son of Yarraman to claim his rightful place as King of the Cascade Brumbies.

[Thowra fighting against The Brolga]

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] It would not be a fight to the death for both were magnificent stallions in the prime of their lives. It would be a fight for supremacy, a fight to stay on in the Cascades as King, or leave as the vanquished never to return. And it was The Brolga who bowed to the youth and grace of Thowra relinquishing his place to the younger son of brave Yarraman. [echoes]

Indi: I knew he could beat The Brolga, Mum. Now Thowra's the King. King of all the Cascade brumbies. It's a fantastic story, Mum. Can I take it to school with me when I go back? Sarah and Dean will just love it.

Elyne: What makes you think it's finished? Do you think The Man thinks it's finished?

Indi: No one can beat Thowra, Mum.

[Darcy arrived the hut]

Egan: I've been waiting for you, Darcy.

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] He will have to hide Golden and the foal somewhere safe, where they won't find them. Away from the rest of the herd who are too easy to track, especially with Darcy. And he'll have to use all his cunning to make sure the men don't get too close.

Darcy: [calls out] Egan!

Jock: Darcy said he gave them a proper run for their money. Looked like they'd been dragged to hell and back when they got back to my place. But what an ending? Darcy said it was unbelievable. This ghost of a horse just heads for the cliff and takes off into space. Rather be dead than be captured.

Elyne Mitchell: There's no way that maybe?

Jock: No, no hope. Nowhere to land except for the bottom. [Indi rans off]

Elyne Mitchell: [Narrating] For years to come men around campfires, women at country shows, children in schools will tell stories of a great silver brumby seen galloping on windpacked snow. Of a ghost horse drinking at the Crackenback River. Of a horse that everyone thought was dead appearing in a blizzard at Dead Horse Gap and vanishing again. Of the wild stallion cry that could only be Thowra's. But no human really knows where the son of Bel Bel roams. Thowra, the greatest brumby of them all.

Taglines

The magic of the mountain. The obsession of a man. The beauty of the Silver Brumby.
His spirit cannot be tamed.
From the best selling classic Australian novel by Elyne Mitchell

Cast

Caroline Goodall as Elyne Mitchell
Russell Crowe as Egan "The Man"
Amiel Daemion as Indi Mitchell
Johnny Raaen as Jock
Buddy Tyson as Darcy
Graeme Fullgrabe as Auctioneer
Gary Amos as Rider #1
Murray Chesson as Rider #2
John Coles as Rider #3
Danny Cook as Rider #4
Peter Faithfull as Rider #5
Richard Faithfull as Rider #6
Cody Harris as Rider #7
Ken Mitchell as Rider #8
Charles A. Harris as Rider #9

External links

The Silver Brumby (film) at Wikiquote's sister projects:
	Article at Wikipedia
	Media from Commons
	Database entry #Q7764269 on Wikidata

The Silver Brumby quotes at the Internet Movie Database