the sentimental bloke

G
Raymond Longford, 109 mins, Australia, 1919, B&W, Silent, 35mm. Print courtesy of the National Film & Sound Archive of Australia

The Sentimental Bloke

Published in 1915, C.J. Dennis's Songs of A Sentimental Bloke attained the status of cultural treasure. Released four years after the poems, Raymond Longford's delightful screen version was an instant hit.

Transposing the setting from Melbourne to Sydney's waterfront Woolloomooloo, the story of a hard-drinking city larrikin tamed by love retains its sense of joyous discovery and exuberance.

Longford's casting was faultless; the 'bloke' (Arthur Tauchert) has a broad 'mick' face, gap teeth, and a coat straining at the buttons; his mate, the whippet-like Ginger Mick (Gilbert Emery), is all bravado and braces; Australia's first 'movie star', Lottie Lyell, gives Doreen a shrewd independence.