Starstruck
Clip 3: Pink lifesavers
3 min 8 sec
Taken from the feature Starstruck (1982)
Original title classification MA – this clip chosen to be PG
Availability of the complete title
Curator’s clip description
Jackie (Jo Kennedy) has been invited to a rooftop party by her idol, the rock show host Terry (John O’May), but she’s surprised to find that he’s exclusively interested in male companionship. She joins the poolside fun, as a bevy of men in 1930s bathers and life-saver caps perform a water ballet, in the style of an Esther Williams musical.
Curator’s notes
The satirisation of Australian masculine icons reaches its most elaborate and entertaining in this inventive sequence. The film was aimed at teenage girls, but given an MA rating, which meant that the clips could not be shown on ABC-TV’s Countdown, the most influential show for the target audience. The stars of the movie hosted the show instead.
Paul Byrnes, curator
