Frank Howson: The Unsung Auteur | FilmInk

Frank Howson had a long and varied career in show business, to put it mildly – child actor, tap dancer, pop star, member of the original Australian cast of Jesus Christ Superstar, songwriter, theatre impresario, painter, activist, writer, producer, director, actor (his bio is here) – but he is probably best remembered, outside Melbourne at least, for a series of movies that he made in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.

During that period, he was one of the most prolific filmmakers in the country, a productive streak that included Backstage, Boulevard of Broken Dreams, What the Moon Saw, Heaven Tonight, Hunting, Flynn, and Beyond My Reach. If none of these movies were a notable critical or commercial success, they sold around the world, won awards, were crucial to the career of Guy Pearce, and are still in circulation.

Eventually, it all came crashing down – there were lawsuits, criminal charges, films left uncompleted, personal and professional bust-ups. We’re not here to write about that period – that’s a job best left for people who knew him – but we did want to write something about those seven key films because they form part of a unique Australian cinematic legacy.

Howson didn’t direct all those films, but he (co-) wrote and produced them all, and they explore recurring themes as much as any auteur: the culture clash between Australia and the US, the importance of artists remaining relevant, what constitutes selling out, the sacrifices to “make it” in show business, the struggles of middle-aged men, a love of theatre and music, the difficulty of maintaining a long-term romantic relationship, adoring shots of Melbourne (Howson could be perhaps the most Melbourne-philic film producer of them all).

Howson even had his own stock company, John Ford-style, which consisted of a combination of old vets (John Waters, Kym Gyngell, Tommy Dysart) and young talent (Guy Pearce, Nicki Paull, Rebecca Rigg, Alan Fletcher). The old Hollywood analogy is particularly appropriate as a lot of Howson’s films were very influenced by the studio’s golden age, whether via genre (tearjerkers, biopics, backstage stories) or settings (the worlds of theatre, film, music).

Howson’s key movies (we describe them as such because we haven’t seen the others) have other things in common too. They look splendid, are well acted, and all had terrific potential that went unrealised.

Backstage is a case in point. The film became something of a joke on its release for various reasons: it featured in a Four Corners expose on the 10BA system, starred Laura Branigan in a role that required her to act in Chekov, and was a critical and commercial disaster. We actually think – and realise that we’re in a minority here – that Backstage could have been a fantastically fun film: it had a terrific support cast (Rowena Wallace, Gyngell, Noel Ferrier), an engaging lead (Michael Aitkens) and an interesting, culturally relevant central theme (whether imported American stars are good or bad in Australian projects). But then they cast Laura Branigan, who can sing but can’t act, and got her to play a role where she acts and can’t sing, and… Oh, look, it’s a mess, but, as the Ozmovies website would say, it’s the duty of every Ozmovie cultist to see it. In fairness, Howson claimed Backstage was taken away from him but the film is full of themes from his later work and is still recognisably Howson-ian. Side note: some reviewers complained that it wasn’t believable that a theatre critic could teach acting but there have been some examples of that over the years eg Harold Clurman.

Boulevard of Broken Dreams was another Hollywood throwback – an attempt to do an old weepie with its terminally ill writer (John Waters) trying to reconnect with his wife and child, plus a bunch of stock theatrical types in support. Melbourne has rarely looked more beautiful than in this movie, which has a fabulous cast and story full of potential (that word again), but is let down by its scripting. Weepies are harder to do than you think… incidentally, the best how-to guide is the introduction to the published version of Casey Robinson’s Dark Victory (1939) script.

Still, the film was successful enough for Howson and his business partner to raise funds for a slate of other movies. This was received with surprise and envy within the industry at the time, as 10BA was being wound back, but you’ve got to say, when Howson had his chance, he took it. (A financial history of his company, Boulevard Films, would be fascinating.)

What the Moon Saw was another Melbourne love-letter, specifically a valentine to kids’ theatre. The film is full of charm and had so much (you guessed it) potential, it’s frustrating that it’s not better than it is: it looks splendid, has a magical atmosphere and features fantastic actors (including Kym Gyngell who delivered a string of performances in Howson films to rank with any of the great character actor vets from Hollywood’s golden age). However, once more, as a writer Howson made a series of errors, notably under-utilising his characters and including a dream sequence in act three that goes for twenty minutes. He later said that he wrote the script in one night and you can kind of tell.

Heaven Tonight is probably Howson’s best movie. It is the best structured, possibly due to the input of Alister Webb who is credited as co-writer. It has a strong central situation, the drama works logically and it is excellently cast. Howson demonstrated his eye for young talent by giving Guy Pearce the role of John Waters’ son – we all know now Pearce turned into “Guy Pearce” but when Heaven Tonight was made, he was considered something of a joke because of Neighbours (this was an automatic judgement made about soap stars at the time by people who never watched them and were too dumb/lazy to know where actors like Demi Moore, Alec Baldwin, Morgan Freeman, Meg Ryan, Susan Sarandon, Kevin Kline, Kathleen Turner, Russell Crowe, Ted Danson and Kevin Bacon came from).

Howson used Pearce in at least three films (we think there was a fourth that wasn’t released, Friday on my Mind), keeping the actor employed in that tricky career period between Neighbours and Priscilla – this contribution to Pearce’s success could be Howson’s greatest cinematic legacy.

What lets down Heaven Tonight is its music. Musical taste is subjective and we have a lot of appreciation for Howson carving out a long career as a song writer, but if scripting is the main weakness for his movies, a close second is his taste for middle-of-the-road soft rock. Howson smothers his films in the stuff, so if you’re resistant to that style, it makes things harder to watch. Still, Heaven Tonight would make the basis for a great stage musical.

Beyond My Reach is a low-fi type of movie about Australians seeking success in the US. Again, it’s well acted (Howson once more showed his eye for talent by giving a lead role to Alan Fletcher) and has interesting themes… it just feels like it’s written too hurriedly. There are good moments, like a sequence demonstrating the impact of violence on screen. Howson later married star Terri Garber.

Hunting was something a little different, an erotic thriller, with a sensational performance by Kerry Armstrong. It is totally undermined by the casting of John Savage, whose role should’ve been played by Guy Pearce, who has a support part. Once more, Melbourne looks beautiful.

Pearce also had the lead role in Howson’s swing at the big time: Flynn, aka Young Flynn aka My Forgotten Man. This was a particularly troubled production (much of the film was reshot) and the movie has Howson virtues (gorgeous pictures, skilled actors, interesting themes, love of show business) and flaws (scripting). Pearce takes all his chances and, for what it’s worth, the film is the best of the movies made about young Errol Flynn (eg In Like Flynn, the TV movie of My Wicked Wicked Ways, and the episode of Mike Willesee’s Australians).

Howson’s subsequent career was colourful. He suffered a series of legal, personal and professional setbacks, and many of his remaining movies were not completed and/or never released, including The Intruder, Come Rain or Shine, Slow Night at Kuwaiti Cafe, Crimetime, Friday on my Mind, Remembering Nigel, A Thin Life. He had more success in music and the theatre. To give him his due, Howson never, ever stopped plugging away.

Frank Howson was definitely one of the characters of Australian showbusiness – for a stroll through his mind, check out his blog here. If we’ve upset any of his friends and colleagues with this piece during their grieving, that hasn’t been the intent – we just wanted to tip the hat to an artist with a very personal, interesting body of work.

Main Photo from https://frankhowson.com/