Gulpilil

by Derek Rielly, Trevor Jamieson (Narrator)

It's been almost fifty years since a teenage David Gulpilil illuminated screens worldwide with his breakout role in Walkabout. It was the first time we'd seen an Aboriginal person cast in a significant role and only four years after Holt's referendum to alter the constitution and give Aboriginal people citizenship and, subsequently, the right to vote.

Gulpilil quickly became the face of the Indigenous world to white Australian audiences. Charisma. Good looks. A competent, strong, mysterious man starring in films ranging from Rabbit-Proof Fence to Crocodile Dundee.

But what has marked Gulpilil, despite his fame and popularity, is the feeling that he's been forever stuck between two worlds: a Yolngu man, a hunter, a tracker, who grew up in the bush in Arnhem Land outside any white influence; and a movie star flitting from sets to festivals. Able to exist in both worlds, but never truly home.

From the author of the bestselling Wednesdays with Bob , Derek Rielly attempts to encapsulate the most beguiling and unconventional of Australian entertainers, observing Gulpilil's own attempt to find a place in the world. With interviews from icons and friends - such as Jack Thompson, Paul Hogan, Craig Ruddy, George Gittoes, Gary Sweet and Damon Gameau - this unriddles a famous enigma at last.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Indigenous, Australia, Film

Audiobook

First published September 24, 2019

Reviews

[Elaine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gulpilil deserves a good biography but this isn’t it. Derek Rielly really tries too hard with many mangled metaphors, bizarre similes and awkward attempts to use the vernacular. Gulpilil is a difficult subject and hard to understand from the perspective of a European Australian. The tragedy of straddling two worlds is a tough one to explore. However, there is too much purple prose where simple sentences would have been much more effective.
I feel guilty, as this review seems so mean-spirited. Thinking about it, and the biography genre in general, this was one which had at least as much about the writer as there is about the subject.

[Joanne, drinker of tea, reader of books, servant to cats · Rating 1 out of 5]

This should have been a great book. It wasn't.

This could have been a fascinating biography of a talented man. It wasn't.

Instead it was a who's who and history of all the famous people the author met, and then a couple of anecdotes from them about Gulpilil.

Disjointed, confusing, and highly disappointing are the only things I can write in review of this book.

Gulpilil is worthy of a great biography. Derek Reilly did not deliver.

[Noelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

Really enjoyed the writing and certain parts of this. However, this feels more about how other's perceived and felt about David Gulpilil rather than about the life of the man himself. Very sobering to read this after his passing.

[Tricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t know what to expect with this book. I knew vaguely of him as an actor but didn’t really know much else. Gulpilil is at the moment dying of lung cancer and I think it will be a real loss to the Australian acting community when he passes.

What an extraordinary life he has led! Born into a traditional world, but then became an actor. It was interesting for me too see how the two worlds were sometime difficult for him to navigate.

The book does jump around a bit but it is full of interesting facts and stories which keeps the reader entertained. It was probably a 3.5 star book for me.

[Ron Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Gulpilil would be a difficult subject to write a traditional biography. For the first decade of his life he never met a white person, from his late teens till today he has had to explain his, life and culture to a continuum of white people, close and distant friends and acquaintances.

I remember the television program 60 Minutes did a segment where they got a group of highly trained SAS and a group of Aboriginal men led by David and challenged them to travel across a desolate part of northern Australia. The SAS set out all highly equipped to be the first to reach the destination. Gulpilil’s group wandered off in the bush and had a laugh. What was the purpose of charging off to this artificial destination? It was a classic example of Gulpilil’s dismissal of white man’s ways.

Derek Rielly writes in an informal magazine style. The writing has an Aussie conversational sound. Rielly speaks with David, his carer, Mary and many of those who have been significant in David’s life: George Gittoes, Paul Hogan, Phil Noyce, Jack Thompson, Gary Sweet. Wayne O’Donovan, who became Gulpilil’s handler is the most revealing.


Mostly he quotes verbatim what these people said to him. All speak with love and affection for Gulpilil. None had a paternalistic or superior view of David. Some had interesting and insightful stories about David and the person he was/is.
David befriended many and was admired by many. Denis Hopper was one white fella who Gulpilil found challenging.

Probably the deepest and meaningful relationship was between David and Rolf deHeer. The film producer visited him in gaol and then saw the need to make a film that would be David’s story – “Charlie’s Country.”

Any biography of David Gulpilil would be a difficult write and I think a number of the reviewers on this page have been somewhat harsh on Rielly. For a non-Aboriginal person to try to write a deep reflective account of David Gulpilil’s life would be a form of cultural misappropriation. Rielly has evaded a too analytical review of David’s life but has rather let others speak of him. It was like being at a funeral and people were invited to get up and speak about the deceased.

David Gulpilil appeared in 21 films, he was the Aboriginal face of Australia, yet he is not listed as a National Living Treasure.

I am glad I read this book, I feel by learning more about this fine Aboriginal man I have paid homage to him. Sadly, I am sure that in the next few weeks or months I will read of his passing. This country is a better place for him being here.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty disappointing. For a biography it was very disjointed.
I don't think Rielly had a strong enough connection with Gulpilil to write about his life.
He glazes over the challenges of "straddling two worlds" without saying anything insightful about the complex race relations in Australia.
Rielly talks about himself far too much. If you want to hear about Gulpilil's life you will be much better off watching this 1 hour interview with Margaret Pomeranz: https://youtu.be/rr5fDeezoqY

[Karina · Rating 2 out of 5]

An amazing spiritual and talented man with an incredible life story. Sadly, this book left me disappointed. It was more about the author, other actors, directors, etc that crossed paths with David Gulpilil than about Gulpilil himself and didn’t do his life justice at all. The book felt disjointed and at times confusing.

[Steve Maxwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

To say that I enjoyed this biography of one of Australia's most underrated actors of all time is an understatement.

It doesn't go into his early life but instead focuses on his acting career and later life. I learned a lot about this wonderful and humble man.

R.I.P. 'David' Gulpilil ❤

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to love this but it just didn’t live up to what it should have been.

[Holly Telford · Rating 3 out of 5]

The last 3 chapters really saved this book, especially Richard Trudgen’s perspectives. I liked learning about Gulpilil as a Yolŋu man, not so much hearing about how rich white men perceived him. I expected a bit more.
David Gulpilil 5 stars, book 3 stars.

[Vicki Klemm · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great that he was ‘discovered’ and made several movies and Aboriginies put in the mainstream, but too bad that he was taken advantage of by his own people and others. Makes me want to see all of the films he was in.

[Theresa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I quit this book a few chapters in. I tried to give this one a chance - it is a book by a white person, for white people, and relies heavily on othering and romanticisation to present Gulpilil as a man “caught between two worlds”. But I hit the return button on my library app when I got to the chapter where an interviewee says, unchallenged, that the “Aboriginals” are a “downtrodden race”.

[Rohan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not chronological, instead going across different themes. But very repetitive. I would rather just a straightforward biography. Or if thematic, a more complex analysis of his unique crossover between his Aboriginal culture and Hollywood.

[Fiona · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loved hearing the stories, but felt too much was missing in understanding a truly wonderful and complex individual. Not the comprehensive biography I was hoping for but an enjoyable wander back through his films. Watching all his films again.

[Natalie · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars
Unfortunately i didn't feel this biography shared enough about Gulpilil. It seemed to focus more on people around him, the movies he made and actors who knew him, and other side topics. I was hoping this would paint a better picture about Gulpilil's life from his birth to his passing.

[Brooke Alice (brookes.bookstagram) · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Gulpilil is an incredible, strong and proud Yolngu man, who has lead an incredible life between two worlds.

He was able to grow up in Arnhem Land, with his family, and learnt the traditional and cultural lore of his people. He was not influenced by any white people and was able to learn important hunting and tracking skills. In his adult life, he was able to transfer across to white Australia, and was able to be such an influential person on our screens, appearing in films such as The Tracker, Rabbit Proof Fence, Crocodile Dundee, Ten Canoes, Storm Boy and Charlie's Country.

He has been able to transcened between the two lives and cultures, and has been a very important bridge for many Australians to be able to learn more about our First Nations. He has always been able to maintain his humour, strength and wit, and you could feel that throughout this book.

This is a beautiful biography by Derek Rielly, who interviewed him, and many of his family, friends and colleagues over the 50 years he has been gracing our screens.

I am saddened to hear that he is so unwell, and may be gone soon. It will be a sad day when we lose such an important connection to traditional culture and land.

[Rob Nicholls · Rating 4 out of 5]

A challenging book to write and read. Gulpilit was in the final months of his life and very ill with lung cancer and so was very restricted in his input into his story. The views of those who know, almost all non-indigenous, became the reflection of his life. Therefore, it is more about the impact Gilpilil had on people in the world of movies and friends. Sometimes its not easy to tell who is who in this. It seems that many people claim him in various ways and have their own views of who he is. I would love to have read the perspective of his people from his country. I understand why that may be difficult but the trouble with the impact an actor of Gulpilil's talent on others is to know when he is acting and when he is himself. I did enjoy gaining some perspective on this amazing man and his impact and there is also a picture here of the two worlds that was attempted to capture in his portrait that won the Archibald. Can those two worlds become more harmonious or are they doomed to clash? The life of Gulpipil illustrates the catastrophic fallout when they do.

[Keith Millar · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Gulpilil is one of our country's living treasures. Sadly, little known outside Australian film industry and with movie buffs.
I was fortunate to be given the Derek Reilly book as a gift by a client, otherwise I probably wouldn't have read it. And Gulpilil, would have remained unknown to me.
During the reading I felt many personal emotions, highs from his achievements but saddened that he often has to suffer narrow attitudes of some of living amongst us. about this wonderful newly discovered person trying to navigate through two cultures. Considering he hadn't had interactions with European and spoken English till in his teens.
Whilst the author attracts criticism for the content and structure I enjoyed the short stories. I thought fitting as much of indigenous history is aural and story telling. I enjoyed many of the short tales from well known Australians. Although towards the end I wondered who some of these late entries were from, and became an effort to finish the book.
It would have been a hard project for the author in covering such a vast land and getting facts to base his writing.
I have this penchants for book covers and titles. Gulpillil had a magnificent photograph of David face with all the character indigenous have in their face.
As a result of reading Gulipillil I am more conscious of the poor state and attitudes that original nataion have cope with.

[Tim Adams · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted this to be so much more. I adored Gulpilil as a kid and in reading this book, I hoped to learn about where he came from, the struggles he overcame and those he didn’t. I’ve heard so much about how he existed in two worlds but struggled to live in either and I wanted to find out how that affected him. Instead of a genuine biography, this book is a collection of observations and memories from people who’ve known Gulpilil, those who’ve worked with him, interspersed with snapshots of his last days where he was suffering from the effects of chemo and infection. Instead of the story of Gulpilil, the reader gets other peoples interpretations of him.

I also had this as an audiobook, rather than a text book. That may have made a difference, as the people narrating was not a strong reader at all.

[Lish · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really let me down, but I’m giving it 4/5 because I still think it’s an important read. Rielly’s structure of repeated interviews mainly with people other than Gulpilil made it feel like less of a biography and more a collection of stories from people who knew Gulpilil. Given his poor health condition I can appreciate the difficulties Rielly would’ve faced to get stories out, but it seems a bit insensitive to have a 256 page book written of a man who played leading roles in countless significant movies and TV series, leaving many a lasting impact on the audience. Gulpilil deserves his story told in a much more fitting way than this book.

[Yasu · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thought-provoking and awe-inspiring insight into the life of this legend and the people who were lucky enough to be in his orbit. I thought Riley could have better explored the topic of race and discrimination and it definitely feels like Australia is "forgiven" in the way it treated Mr Gulpilil and other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. However this might make it more palatable for a wider audience.... regardless, I enjoyed it so much that I now feel the need to go and watch/rewatch all of his works!!

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found it interesting to listen to the audio of this book.
I would have liked for it to have been a little less about the people G knew and more about and from the man himself. Whatever is said, the man is so special and deserves to be honoured and remembered. He deserved so much more than what life served him. Thinking about him and his people, what a great loss.

[Dragonladymoi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book took me quite a while to read as I wasn’t comfortable with the writing style. The story was almost finished when it become very interesting: sometimes with humour and other times, quite sad. These parts were mostly anecdotal and were related by significant characters in Gulpilil’s life.

It left me with an interest in viewing Gulpilil’s movies and with an interest in reading more true stories relating to this cross-cultural issue. Overall, I felt sadness when Gulpilil was obviously unwell and yet still pressed to give interviews.

I rated this book three stars.

[Ruby Noise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Magnificent.

[Tracy Smyth · Rating 3 out of 5]

An good read

[Stefanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating book about a fascinating man, with fantastic pictures as well. Highly recommend.

[Lee Banfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

A definite true Australian legend should be required reading for all Australians

[KnifeySpooney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty brief book with some nice stories about the man told from friends in the Film and Arts industries. An easy read that is worth checking out if you are a fan of David Gulpilil.

[Trish · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

[Gayle · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a man! A fantastic insight into First Nations Australia. 200+ years of white settlement and we still don’t get them.