Unfinished Business (1985 Australian film)

Geoff, a journalist in his mid 40s, returns to Australia from 15 years abroad, leaving behind him in the US a failed marriage and three children. He meets Maureen, the girl he was in love with when he left Australia. She is married to an older man, George, who she loves but have no children. Maureen - who once fell pregnant but had an abortion - tells Geoff her husband is sterile and asks for him to impregnate her. A year later, Geoff meets Maureen and her baby. ==Cast==

• John Clayton as Geoff • Michelle Fawdon as Maureen • Norman Kaye as George ==Production==

Development Bob Ellis originally wanted to make a film in the style of My Dinner with Andre starring Patrick Cook and John Clarke called Business Lunch. Clarke would play an ABC executive about to tell Cook he was going to be fired and dialogue would be largely improvised. $60,000 was raised by Patric Juillet and Rebel Penfold-Russell to make the film but then Clarke became unavailable. "Cook was ready and willing to go whenever we were but Clarke was impossible to pin down and so the whole thing lost momentum," said Ellis. "We had to spend the money so the producer, Rebel Penfold Russell, asked me to come up with another small idea with "business" in the title. The result was Unfinished Business. We had to raise a little more money to cover it because you've no idea how hard it is to come up with a small idea. Big ideas are far easier to get. I'm the greatest writer of unmade epics in the business." Shooting The film was rehearsed and shot in eleven days at three locations - Ellis' houses in Wahroonga and Palm Beach and his flat in Bellevue Hill. ==Reception==

The film screened at a number of festivals including the 1986 Sundance Film Festival and 1986 Melbourne International Film Festival. It was reviewed by Vincent Canby in The New York Times. The film was later picked up for distribution by Filmtrust Motion Picture Licensing in Los Angeles. It had a short run in cinemas in Sydney and Melbourne and sold to Channel 0-28. Critical According to David Stratton "Under the circumstancs [of production], it is a miracle that the film works as well as it does. Ellis is convinced that his casting choices were all-important. ... [it] is filled with humour and optimism." Awards The film was nominated for five AFI Awards including best film, best script and best director. ==References==