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The Big Steal


Nadia Tass  •   Australia  • ​ 1990
100 mins  •  HD  •  PG coarse language

This winning ’80s comedy caper stars a young Ben Mendelsohn as a teen conned by a used-car dealer when trying to score his dream car to impress his big crush.

​“Smartly told and briskly paced – and very, very fun” – Guardian
DIRECTOR: Nadia Tass
PRODUCER: David Parker, Nadia Tass
​
PRODUCTION CO: Cascade Films
SCREENPLAY: David Parker
PHOTOGRAPHY: David Parker
EDITOR: Peter Carrodus
MUSIC: Chris Gough, Philip Judd
WITH:  Ben Mendelsohn (Danny Clark), Claudia Carvan (Joanna Johnson), Steve Bisley (Gordon Farkas), Marshall Napier (Desmond Clark), Damon Herriman (Mark Jorgensen), Angelo D'Angelo (Vangeli Petrakis), Tim Robertson (Desmond Johnson), Maggie King (Edith Clark), Sheryl Munks (Pam Schaffer), Lise Rodgers (Mrs Johnson), Frankie J Holden (Frank)

FESTIVALS: Melbourne

​REVIEWS

 “Nadia Tass’ third feature was this early Ben Mendelsohn vehicle, an award-winning, iconically Melbourne teen caper also starring Claudia Karvan and Steve Bisley.

Danny is rapt that he’s lined up a date with Joanna, but there’s one big problem: he promised he’d be rolling up to her door in a Jaguar, a car he absolutely doesn’t have. Taking the family Nissan Cedric to the car lot of dodgy salesman Gordon Farkas, Danny swings a deal for a Jag that’s too good to be true. Sure enough, when it turns out his new car is a bomb, Danny recruits his mates for an intricately plotted plan of revenge.

Written by Tass’ long-time creative partner David Parker (whose efforts won him the AFI Award for Best Screenplay), The Big Steal would be worth seeing for Bisley’s gloriously slimy costuming alone if it also wasn’t Australia’s answer to a John Hughes-esque teen comedy, complete with the first lead performance in a film from the prodigiously talented Mendelsohn.”

— Melbourne International Film Festival
​
“​​A car-lover’s delight, [The Big Steal] invigorates the 1980s teen date-comedy formula with an Aussie sensibility, showcasing the streets of inner-city Melbourne and a sunny Oz-rock soundtrack.”

– Museum of the Moving Image


FILM SOCIETY SCREENINGS

​Palmerston North   
Wednesday, 08 March, 6.00pm

​Auckland   

Monday, 20 March, 6.15pm

New Plymouth   

Wednesday, 29 March, 6.00pm

Tauranga   

Tuesday, 18 April, 6.00pm

Wellington   

Monday, 15 May, 6.15pm

​
Timaru     
Tuesday, 30 May, 6.00pm

​
Queenstown    
Tuesday, 13 June, 8.15pm

​
Whanganui   
Monday, 03 July, 7.00pm

​Dunedin   
Wednesday, 12 July, 7.30pm

​Hamilton   

Monday, 24 July, 6.30pm


AUSTRALIAN CINEMA >>

Film Societies of Aotearoa New Zealand

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New Zealand Federation of Film Societies  |  PO Box 9544, Te Aro, Wellington, NZ  
Phone: +64 4 385 0162  |  Fax: +64 4 801 7304  |  Email: 
michael@nziff.co.nz
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
  • SOCIETIES
    • AUCKLAND
    • HAMILTON
    • TAURANGA
    • NEW PLYMOUTH
    • WHANGANUI
    • PALMERSTON NORTH
    • CARTERTON
    • WELLINGTON
    • NELSON
    • CANTERBURY
    • TIMARU
    • OAMARU
    • QUEENSTOWN
    • DUNEDIN
    • WESTPORT
  • 2023 SEASON
    • JAPANESE CLASSICS
    • AUSTRALIAN CINEMA
    • NEW YORK ON SCREEN
    • WORLD & DOCUMENTARY
    • CULT & CLASSICS
    • NZ FILM
    • FRENCH CINEMA
    • AFRICAN CINEMA
    • GERMAN CINEMA