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The Last Wave
A provocative book by Petru Popescu. The Last Wave, an Australian mystery drama from 1977 is about a white solicitor (Burton) in Sydney--whose seemingly normal life is disrupted after he takes on a murder case and discovers that he shares a strange, mystical connection with a small group of local Australian Aborigines accused of a murder. Plagued by bizarre dreams, Burton senses an otherworldly connection to one of the accused. He also feels connected to the increasingly strange weather phenomena besetting the city, his dreams intensify along with his obsession with the murder case, which he comes to believe is an Aboriginal tribal killing by curse, in which the victim believed. Learning more about Aboriginal practices and the concept of Dreamtime as a parallel world of existence, Burton comes to believe the strange weather bodes of a coming apocalypse. The film climaxes in a confrontation between Burton and the tribe's shaman in a subterranean sacred site . . .
227 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1978
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Petru Popescu
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 3, 2018
Just to be clear, the movie by Peter Weir was not based on this book. In fact, the opposite relationship seems to be true. The book is written by Petru Popescu (one of the screenwriters for the movie), based on “an idea” by Peter Weir. Regardless I thought that reading the book might help to deepen my understanding and appreciation for the movie. And it did.
The Last Wave has always been a favorite movie for me — let’s get that out of the way. It combines a personal story and a story of aboriginal culture with an over-riding apocalyptic vision. The same is true of the book, although the personal story and the aboriginal, tribal story are the ones that I think are intensified in print.
Both are strengthened by a theme that leaps out of the book — the contrast between how Chris Lee and the other defendants, and Charlie, the old leader in the tribe, view their law, and how the government court and its lawyers view the government’s law.
As context, remember, if you have seen the movie, that Chris Lee and four other aboriginal defendants are accused of the murder of another man, Billy Corman, in curious circumstances. Billy appears to have died while being pursued by the five defendants, but there is no clear cause of death, nor any clear relationship between his death and anything the five actually did.
While preparing their case, David Burgess (David Burton, played by Richard Chamberlain in the movie) clashes with the experienced barrister, Michael Zeadler, over defense strategy. Zeadler’s strategy is to have the defendants plead guilty to a charge lighter than murder, so that they will serve relatively short sentences and get on with their lives.
Burgess asks Zeadler if it would make any difference if, in fact, the defendants didn’t kill Billy. Zeadler’s response speaks volumes for his, and others’, attitude toward the law — “Of course not. What dictates a change in defence is such factors as our assessment of the jury or of public opinion, which may be biased in a particular way at a particular time. Anything that might have a bearing on the verdict.” Guilt or innocence don’t seem to have a bearing on the verdict.
The defendants in the meantime give little thought to the government’s law. They are faithful to a much older tribal law that they take much more seriously. As Burgess says, "Don’t you realize that these people are more faithful to their law than a white person is? And why? Because they believe in their values, the same after thousands of years, while we lose faith in ours in less than a decade."
Chris in particular is torn between helping David, with whom he shares spiritually laden dreams, and being true to the tribal law. He doesn’t really care at all what happens to him in the court of government law —how could he, when there is a pending event of true significance and when the government law itself seems to be played out with indifference to truth.
As for the apocalypse itself, I think we are left still wondering. Was it a only a dream or a vision, or was it real? What is the difference? I think that part of the point of the story is to show that the distinction may not be as sharp as we think. The scenes depicting the interplay between dreams and reality are riveting — I got this continuity between dreamtime and reality much more clearly in the book than in the movie (now I know I will see the movie differently as well).
I have no idea whether the depictions of native Australian spirituality, or of dreamtime, are accurate. But the story is compelling. It puts some of our smallness in its place. Chris Lee tells David, “. . . you have lost your dreams.” It’s not just ordinary dreams that he is talking about — it’s our connection to something more significant than the comforts and concerns of day to day life.
The Last Wave has always been a favorite movie for me — let’s get that out of the way. It combines a personal story and a story of aboriginal culture with an over-riding apocalyptic vision. The same is true of the book, although the personal story and the aboriginal, tribal story are the ones that I think are intensified in print.
Both are strengthened by a theme that leaps out of the book — the contrast between how Chris Lee and the other defendants, and Charlie, the old leader in the tribe, view their law, and how the government court and its lawyers view the government’s law.
As context, remember, if you have seen the movie, that Chris Lee and four other aboriginal defendants are accused of the murder of another man, Billy Corman, in curious circumstances. Billy appears to have died while being pursued by the five defendants, but there is no clear cause of death, nor any clear relationship between his death and anything the five actually did.
While preparing their case, David Burgess (David Burton, played by Richard Chamberlain in the movie) clashes with the experienced barrister, Michael Zeadler, over defense strategy. Zeadler’s strategy is to have the defendants plead guilty to a charge lighter than murder, so that they will serve relatively short sentences and get on with their lives.
Burgess asks Zeadler if it would make any difference if, in fact, the defendants didn’t kill Billy. Zeadler’s response speaks volumes for his, and others’, attitude toward the law — “Of course not. What dictates a change in defence is such factors as our assessment of the jury or of public opinion, which may be biased in a particular way at a particular time. Anything that might have a bearing on the verdict.” Guilt or innocence don’t seem to have a bearing on the verdict.
The defendants in the meantime give little thought to the government’s law. They are faithful to a much older tribal law that they take much more seriously. As Burgess says, "Don’t you realize that these people are more faithful to their law than a white person is? And why? Because they believe in their values, the same after thousands of years, while we lose faith in ours in less than a decade."
Chris in particular is torn between helping David, with whom he shares spiritually laden dreams, and being true to the tribal law. He doesn’t really care at all what happens to him in the court of government law —how could he, when there is a pending event of true significance and when the government law itself seems to be played out with indifference to truth.
As for the apocalypse itself, I think we are left still wondering. Was it a only a dream or a vision, or was it real? What is the difference? I think that part of the point of the story is to show that the distinction may not be as sharp as we think. The scenes depicting the interplay between dreams and reality are riveting — I got this continuity between dreamtime and reality much more clearly in the book than in the movie (now I know I will see the movie differently as well).
I have no idea whether the depictions of native Australian spirituality, or of dreamtime, are accurate. But the story is compelling. It puts some of our smallness in its place. Chris Lee tells David, “. . . you have lost your dreams.” It’s not just ordinary dreams that he is talking about — it’s our connection to something more significant than the comforts and concerns of day to day life.
May 10, 2025
This adaptation is highly recommended for those, like me, who found the film spellbinding but ultimately a bit rushed and shallow. The book expands and enriches the story, giving characters clearer motivations and allowing the atmosphere of dread to truly resonate. Mystical elements that felt underexplained in the film gain a lot of depth and coherence here and the apocalyptic unease that was mere background texture in the movie now convincingly builds toward its unsettling climax. Altogether, this is likely the definitive way to experience The Last Wave.
That said, it’s still not high literature. The narrative occasionally slips into pulpy digressions, clichés, and really silly dialogue that undercut its tension. These flaws don’t ruin the experience, but they do hold it back from greatness.
Nevertheless, the book deepened my appreciation of the film and made its enigmatic world feel more complete. A very strong three stars.
That said, it’s still not high literature. The narrative occasionally slips into pulpy digressions, clichés, and really silly dialogue that undercut its tension. These flaws don’t ruin the experience, but they do hold it back from greatness.
Nevertheless, the book deepened my appreciation of the film and made its enigmatic world feel more complete. A very strong three stars.
February 2, 2018
I loved this movie. The book adds a LOT more to it.
David Burgess is hired to defend a group of aboriginals accused of murder.......
Strange weather, weird dreams........David is way in over his head.
David Burgess is hired to defend a group of aboriginals accused of murder.......
Strange weather, weird dreams........David is way in over his head.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews