User Reviews

Interesting mainly ( for adults point of view ) for it's glimpse into a by-gone era of outback life in post-war Australia. We see the children on horseback being allowed to camp in the Australian bush by themselves with a high level of self-sufficiency. The Australian bush adds a splendid back-drop ( almost a "lost world" feel ) to the story.

Well acted by the young cast and supported by able adult actors as well. This original version shot in black and white has a unique quirky feel to it. For the kids it's a fun kids vs bad guys story too.

I'm sure that the producers of both the Home Alone movies and the Spy Kids films must have seen this one at some point in time. Bush Christmas combines good elements of both those film series and has innate charm of its own.

Australia where they never dream about a White Christmas serves as the backdrop for the kid's adventure. Children are on a quest for stolen horses after encountering the thieves Good location photography out in the outback really sets the tone for the kids. No crazy special effects, but the Australian background accents the danger of the kids search. I wish this original version had been done in color, but that was all, but unknown in the nascent Australian film industry.

I like the kids here because they are real. When you watch something like Home Alone or Spy Kids you can't forget you're seeing Hollywood personalities no matter how talented they are. These Aussie kids are real and charming.

Finally to recommend this film is the presence of the first real star who worked and developed the Australian cinema. Chips Rafferty plays Long Bill, one of the horse thieves and even though he's the bad guy, he's a likable cuss as he is in all his films.

At 6'5" Chips is kind of hard to miss and he doesn't exactly have matinée idol looks. But whenever I do see him, I think he represents Australia the same way Maurice Chevalier became an international Frenchman or Harry Lauder is the quintessential Scot. He's tough, he's funny and he had to be the inspiration for Crocidile Dundee. He never gave a bad performance in anything he ever did.

This one is recommended for Australians wherever they might be on this old globe of our's.

Very fun and very different Australian Christmas tale. Some thieves steal horses from a local farmer. The farmer's kids and their friends, a visiting English boy and an Aborigine boy named Neza, take off after the horse thieves themselves. Their pursuit takes them into the Australian bush. Eventually the kids catch up to the thieves and must use their brains to defeat them and get their father's horses back. This is a fun, likable film that's probably unlike anything most kids today have seen. Particularly American kids. I didn't see it until I was an adult but it I enjoyed it a lot. If you want to try a unique Christmas movie, then please try this one out. It's a keeper.

"I don't expect you've ever heard of our valley," says the narrator. "Mara Mara is its name, the name the Australian blacks gave it hundreds of years before we came to their land. Mara Mara. It has a nice, sleepy sound, hasn't it? And we're a sleepy little town, too. Plenty of hard work, but never much excitement. That is to say, not until last Christmas. I must tell you about last Christmas, because then we had too much excitement for a little place like ours. It all started on the afternoon school broke up for Christmas holidays. Of course on our side of the world, Christmas comes in the middle of the summer."

Five children riding their horses from school take a forbidden path and meet two strangers, who give them money and make them promise not to tell anyone about them. The two men learn about Lucy. She's a mare belonging to Mr. Thompson, a sheep farmer and the father of three of the children: Helen (the oldest), John, and six-year-old Snow (so named for the color of his hair). The other two are Michael, an English boy staying with the Thompsons, and Neza, an Australian black who is the son of one of Mr. Thompson's stock men. The two men prove to be horse thieves, and when Lucy and her foal turn up missing the next morning, the children know it must have been them.

They're mortified. Mr. Thompson had saved up three years for that horse, and it's their fault she's gone. The police have no luck finding the thieves, but John is certain he knows where they've gone. The children tell Mrs. Thompson they're going camping. But their real plan is to find the thieves and get Lucy and the foal back.

The strong performances of the children, and the intelligence and resourcefulness of their characters, are the main strong points of this mildly engaging adventure story.

This pleasant kiddie flick has the benefit of being located in the relatively unusual Australian outback despite its Christmas period setting; as everyone knows, Australian Christmases are hot summery ones rather than marked by the cold weather which is so intrinsic to the Christmas spirit for the rest of the world. Although I've become familiar with a handful of Australian movies in fairly recent years, this is undoubtedly the oldest one I've watched so far – although, technically, this is a British-Australian co-production. For the record, the film was quite popular on its home turf and was, in fact, remade much later in 1983 with a young Nicole Kidman featured in the cast!

Anyway, writer-director Ralph Smart had a hand in concocting several earlier, notable British comedies – ALF'S BUTTON AFLOAT (1938), CONVICT 99 (1938), etc. – and later went into TV where he dealt with such heroic figures as William Tell and Robin Hood; indeed, BUSH Christmas adequately displays his light touch and sense of adventure which makes for a decent, low-key entertainment which passes the time amiably enough. The unassuming plot has to do with a group of young children (including a bungling, bespectacled Briton and a half-Aborigine tracker) falling foul of three horse thieves (one of whom is played by popular Australian actor Chips Rafferty).

The exotic wildlife looks without too much interest in this Aussie travelogue and template for the sort of thing the Children's Film Foundation were making ten years later as a trio of crooks (led inevitably by Chips Rafferty) are harassed by a bunch of kids.

This being Down Under, there isn't the water for (SLIGHT SPOILER COMING:) the miscreants to get their usual dunking at the conclusion.

Christmas doesn't play a large role in Bush Christmas, except as perhaps a motivator. It's primarily a film about youngsters surviving in scrublands of Australia. The child actors are alright, and while the story isn't extremely engaging always, it gets the job done. Yes I recommend it. James Welch Henderson, Arkansas 12/8/2020

Today, I saw Leonard Maltin on TV talking about his recommendations for new DVDs. One of these was "Bush Christmas"--and he said it was a nice family film. So, I decided to check out the film--especially since it currently is streaming on Netflix. After watching it, however, I found I wasn't nearly as positive in my opinion on the film and didn't exactly love the picture.

The film is set in the Mara-Mara region of Australia--a desolate place which is being use for ranch land by locals. It seems that there is a problem there with rustlers and the problem is dealt with by the local kids instead of their parents! It seems they've seen the rustlers and the parents don't believe them. So, they set out to stop the crooks themselves--and use their brains to defeat the thieves again and again.

There are some things to like about the film--such as its very sympathetic treatment of aboriginals. One of the kids in the film is an aboriginal and he's treated by the others like an equal--and he is VERY helpful during their tracking of the thieves. But the film suffers a bit from some unnecessary narration as well as a cliché I hate--you know, that kids are somehow smarter than their parents. In 1947 it must have been pretty novel--in the 1980s it was a stupid epidemic in films and on TV. All in all, a passable film but one I certainly did not love. Not bad--just not all that good either.

What a breath of open air and joyful hope this film from the faraway "Dominion" of Australia would have brought to British children worn out from near six years of war 1939-1945, and continuing material shortages in every aspect of life! The sunshine, outdoors sights and sounds, freedom to roam, all had a powerful emotional impact. Ralph Smart caught something of Australia as Australians even now think it ought to be. Chips Rafferty looked and sounded just like the mythic Aussie outback male: capable, good-hearted, courageous and humorous. A fine achievement by the Children's Film Foundation, which was itself an expression of optimism as Britain emerged from a hard-draining war.

The story could be tighter and the film shorter, but otherwise it's hard to find fault with this superb adventure film for children. The black and white cinematography is gorgeous - it's actually rather difficult to capture sweeping landscapes on black and white, but here it looks easy, it's so well done. The story is interesting, the dialog well written, the acting is superb - the kids never get annoying and remain authentic throughout, well supported by the adults who display a remarkable naturalism. Certainly it's "just for kids," that was its intent, and it succeeds admirably. If only one of the many versions of "Tom Sawyer" could have achieved such natural grace and energy! Has held up quite well after more than sixty years.

Don't be scared away by the title, "Bush Christmas" (1947) has nothing to do with George W. or his father. They are referring to the Australian "Bush" and this is a children's film that no doubt was a heavy influence on Nicholas Roeg"s "Walkabout" (1971); as well as its source novel by James Vance Marshall. In both a small band of children find themselves in the bush country and out of their element, getting survival tips from a native boy. "A Far Off Place" (1993) and "Alaska" (1996) also appropriated many elements of the story. "Bush Christmas" is the least gritty of the four films but the most believable and the least manipulative.

It should remind the viewer in some ways of the modern Australian television show "Saddle Club" as the kids are around horses all the time; even riding them to and from school. And the plot involves Grinch-inspired horse thieves who almost ruin Christmas for the family when they steal their prize mare, leaving her young colt behind. So the five children head into the bush to track down the horse thieves, while their parents and the police attempt to rescue them. There is even a Ghost Town (also found in "Walkabout") although you have to suspend disbelief as the (until then) very perceptive children inexplicably take far too long to recognize that the horse thieves are its only residents.

Worth noting is that Helen Grieve plays the only girl in this group of adventurous children but there is no condescension to her, she rides better than the boys and takes on a kind of "Wendy" from "Peter Pan" role in the group.

Christmas in the southern hemisphere is a summer event but the holiday is still celebrated with winter wonderland decorations, presents, and a tree.

Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.

I didn't really expect much going into this movie, why would I? The name, the age and even it's country of origin (my own country) didn't have much to offer it. That is probably a reason why I enjoyed this movie so much, it blew my low expectations out of the water.

The film was shot a lot more cleanly than I expected, showcasing a nice look at Australian Bushland. The children actors, who if I'm to understand correctly were not very experienced, did a great job allowing me to believe their performance. To top it off it wasn't your typical holiday movie, its only tie to Christmas being the time of year it is set.

I honestly can't recommend this movie enough. If you can get your hands on a copy I recommend watching it.

We're watching this every Christmas with our grandchildren. Very nice story,with the children as stars,the kids watching it can relate. Its old,but its timeless! Really a good old dinki di show!

This film must have done wonders to get people to emigrate to Australia from the UK as the life style looked most appealing, except for the horse thieves of course. A great cast, especially the children, and very well shot and a pity it wasn't in colour but it was made in 1947 when colour was not all that common. The children came up with a variety of very inventive ways to delay the baddies who, as always, got their just deserts at the end. A great adventure well worth watching.

i happened on this movie today on turner classic movies. i love a good 40's era black and white 'family' movie with a plot which this is. i did enjoy it. the movie is also surprising for it's use of an aboriginal actor neza saunders. the flick uses aboriginal 'nature knowledge' a bit more satisfactorily than American treatment of indians like tonto. still i can't get used to the use of the term 'blacks'. the term does not carry the respect that is used now for American blacks. it is insulting and degrading. i also note that the only review of the film repeats the term and that the IMDb quick intro/summary lists the other four children by name but not neza saunders one newspaper story about the film tells the story of the filming and the actors including a story about neza falling from his horse when it wouldn't jump like the others. i am currently doing research about neza saunders who apparently died this summer. i would be happy to make anything i find including urls available to anyone requesting them.

"Bush Christmas" tells the story of five young children - Helen (Helen Grieve), Snow (Nicky Yardley), John (Morris Unicomb), Michael (Michael Yardley), and Neza (Neza Saunders). On their way home from school during the Christmas break, they encounter two strangers: Long Bill (Aussie icon "Chips" Rafferty) and Jim (John Fernside). They innocently tell the strangers about the expensive mare they have waiting for them at home, not knowing that the grown men are horse thieves. Later that night, Long Bill & Jim steal the mare and her foal, and the five plucky kids, feeling responsible, set out into the wilderness to atone for their mistake.

This is another fine film, an Aussie classic, that deserves just as much of a spot on your shelf as other, much more well known Yuletide perennials. Written, produced, and directed by Ralph Smart, its primary asset is a bunch of incredibly ingratiating performances by the youthful leads, and similarly engaging turns by Rafferty and Fernside (the latter a corpulent sort who's along for bumbling comedy relief). This being a family film, it manages to create a sense of danger for the kids - both in terms of the antagonists and in terms of the forbidding wilderness - while avoiding being particularly unpleasant.

This also has a unique atmosphere for a Christmas-set story, seeing that Australia cannot experience a "white Christmas". (Not that the story really revolves around the holiday; it just happens to be set during Christmastime.) The location shooting is first-rate, and the score by Sydney John Kay is quite potent.

Overall, this is quite charming, worth a look for people who've tired of some of the standard viewings of the season. It even got a remake in 1983 (with said remake marking the feature film debut of a young Nicole Kidman).

Eight out of 10.