Aeroplane Dance 1994
Distributed by First Run/Icarus Films, 32 Court St., 21st Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11201; 800-876-1710
Produced by Trevor Graham; Film Australia
Directed by Trevor Graham
VHS, color, 58 min.
Adult
Anthropology
Date Entered: 11/09/2018
Reviewed by Kathleen Loomis, Electronic Resources Librarian, Daniel A. Reed Library, SUNY College at Fredonia, loomis@fredonia.edu.Aeroplane Dance, is really three stories in one. One story is of the crew of a World War II bomber that crashed in a remote area of northern Australia in 1942. The second is of the members of the local Yanyuwa tribe who searched for the crew during that time period. The third is the story of an anthropologist who visits the Yanyuwa over fifty years later to chronicle the dance that the tribe members created to commemorate this event before the tribe's language and cultural identity dies out. The three stories merge to tell a story of war, myth, and varied viewpoints.
The film is very well edited, switching between the report of one of the crewmembers of the bomber, to interpretations of the event by the Yanyuwa who were alive during that time. The story of the survival of the men mirrors the struggle of the Yanyuwa to keep their culture alive. The dance itself becomes a symbol of the mixture of two cultures. The viewer is shown two different viewpoints--that of the soldiers who starved trying to find food, and the natives who state that theirs is a rich land with plenty of food. Interviews with members of the Yanyuwa tribe show how they wish to perform the dance "one more time" before it is forgotten. Also learned is the Yanyuwa's view of the war and how it affected their lives.
The film is an exemplary work showing how the modern world has encroached on ancient ways, changing them forever. It would make an excellent addition to anthropology curricula. Highly recommended.