Careful He Might Hear You

In the turbulent years of the Great Depression an orphaned boy becomes a pawn in a bitter family feud as two aunts - snooty Anglophile Vanessa (Wendy Hughes), and working-class Lila (Robyn Nevin) - battle for his custody. Newly returned from a world tour, wealthy socialite Vanessa lavishes the boy with gifts, limousine rides, and affection; but the dowdy Lila is determined to fight her sister's custody claims in court. The case is complicated by the arrival of the boy's long-absent father, Logan (John Hargreaves), an alcoholic who loves his son but is incapable of caring for him. Winner of eight AFI awards - including Best Picture, Best Actress (Hughes), and Best Supporting Actor (Hargreaves) - and adapted from the best-selling Sumner Locke Elliot novel, this lush, poetic period film classic is the essential story of an Australian boy's coming-of-age in the tough Depression years. ©New South Wales Film and Television Office, 1987