This is a story about an English Lady who has to run the cattle farm of her husband in Australia after he gets killed and all that that entails. ady Sarah Ashley (Nicole Kidman) arrives in Australia from England in 1939. She is looking to force her straying husband to sell his cattle farm, Faraway Downs. Her husband sends Drover (Hugh Jackman), to take her to the farm. Sarah's husband is killed just before she arrives. Meanwhile, the farm's manager, Fletcher, tries to get Faraway Downs under his control, so that big landowner Carney will have the monopoly for cattle in the area. The childless Sarah is taken by the half-Aboriginal boy Nullah. He tells her, her cattle is being stolen and led to Carney's land. Consequently Fletcher beats Nullah and threatens him. So Sarah fires Fletcher and runs the farm herself. Sarah teaches Nullah the Wizard of Oz song "Over the Rainbow". Nullah tells her that his grandfather King George is a wizard too.
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Sarah gets Drover to drive her 1,500 heads of cattle to Darwin and sell them off. He leads a team of six, including Sarah, to drive cattle. On their way, they come across a number of obstacles, among which a fire caused by Carney's men leading the cattle to stampede. In the end they reach Darwin and deliver the cattle. Sarah and Drover have fallen in love along the way and afterwards, Sarah, Nullah, and Drover live happily on her farm, Faraway Downs. In the meantime, Fletcher murders Carney, takes over his cattle empire, and marries his daughter. Then Nullah is taken away by the authorities to live on Mission Island, along with other half-Aboriginal children. Sarah has come to view Nullah as her son and swears to save him. It's the time of World Word II and she has found a job in Darwin as radio operator. When the Japanese bomb the island as well as Darwin, Sarah is afraid Nullah will have been killed.
Drover, who had left after a quarrel, returns to Darwin and learns that Sarah supposedly has been killed by the Japanese bombs. When he hears about Nullah's abduction and transport to Mission Island, he goes to rescue him and the rest of the children. Sarah is just to be evacuated from Darwin, but when Nullah plays the song "Over the Rainbow" that she taught him on his mouth organ, sailing into the harbor of Darwin with Drover and the other children, Sarah hears the music and finds them. Fletcher tries to shoot Nullah, but is fatally injured by King George's spear. Drover, Sarah, and Nullah return to Faraway Downs. But when King George calls on Nullah, they go walkabout in the desert.
Best part of story, including ending:
It's kind of a western but then set in Australia in the late 1930s, early 1940s.
Best scene in story:
Where Drover is on the island looking for the abducted children who come out after they think it's safe, but still get bombed. (It ends well!)
Opinion about the main character:
She has never had to work to survive but steps up to the plate anyway.
