“The Legend of Molly Johnson” is set in 1893 on an isolated property, where a heavily pregnant woman named Molly Johnson (Leah Purcell) and her children struggle to survive the harsh Australian landscape. Her husband is gone, droving sheep in the high country. Molly then finds herself confronted by a shackled Aboriginal fugitive named Yadaka (Rob Collins); an unlikely bond begins to form between them, revealing secrets about Molly’s true heritage as an Aboriginal woman. As more pieces of the past are shared, unleashing a tragic turn of events, Molly becomes an unlikely signal of feminism and anti-racism.
Inspired by a short story by Australian writer Henry Lawson that she heard as a child, writer, director, and star Leah Purcell has turned a classic colonial tale into a gripping tale of feminist strength. Journalist Katherine Tulich talks with Purcell in this video report.
