The New Boy (2023) - full transcript

A nine-year-old Aboriginal Australian orphan boy arrives in the dead of night at a remote monastery run by a renegade nun.

Police!

Police coming through.

Make way.

Police! Coming through.

Make way. Make way.

Come on, make

way. Police business.

Bugger!

Is Dom Peter here?

No, he's asleep.

But he asked me to wait.

I got a special

delivery for him.

It's a little darkie.

No, don't do that, don't

do that. He's a bolter!

Hey! Get out of there.

Little bugger,

come out of there.

- Come out of there.

- Is that what we're doing?

- Hey?!

- What are you doing, Sister?

Is it? Come on!

- What are you doing?

- Come on, I dare ya!

Take the paperwork, will ya?

Jesus!

- What's his name?

- He hasn't got one.

I'm Sister Eileen.

Hey!

- What?

- You scared him.

Oh.

Here.

What's your name?

Hey.

Look here, new kid.

Ahh. Mm-mm.

You want some?

Come on.

- He's not a joey.

- Hmm.

Come here. Come on.

Come on over.

You like that?

That's my marmalade.

Here, come here.

Do...

- Want this, yeah?

- Hey!

He's from the desert, that kid.

Go back to sleep.

Hello. What's your name?

Come on, out you come.

You wanna meet everyone?

Come on, come out.

He's wearing a dress!

Good morning, my son.

Alright. Go on. Go and

join your brothers.

Glory be to the

Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Ghost, as

it was in the beginning,

is now and ever shall

be, world without end.

- Amen.

- Amen.

Now, ah...

there's a new boy who

joined us last night.

I'm sure you've all met him,

but I hope that you will

show him the ways of our

little family and welcome him

into, into the fold.

Thank you, Sister.

So,

as one lamb arrives,

another departs.

And we are sad,

today, that our Johnny

is leaving us to

begin a new journey.

Come forward.

That's right.

Yep, you've got to bend

over it. That's right.

Good boy.

Dear Lord,

I present this lost boy to you

so that he may be baptised

and join your flock.

May the water

from your heart

wash away all his sins.

In the name of our Lord,

I baptise you... John.

- Thank you, Sister.

- Okay.

Now, will you all turn to

your hymn books, page 62.

"The Lord is my Shepherd."

♪ The Lord's my Shepherd ♪

♪ I'll not want ♪

♪ He makes me down to lie ♪

♪ In pastures green ♪

♪ He leadeth me ♪

♪ The quiet waters by ♪

Come on, boys.

Come on. Hep, hep.

Come and get it, boys.

I'm sad to see

you leave, Johnny.

You're a good boy. You

look after yourself.

Thank you, Sister Mum.

Know when to bite your tongue.

Michael.

Thank you, Sister Mum.

Matthew.

Thank you, Sister Mum.

Steven.

Thank you, Sister Mum.

James.

Thank you, Sister Mum.

Henry.

Thank you, Sister Mum.

Ah, the little new one.

Every kid here

calls me Sister Mum,

'cause they don't have a mum.

And if you ain't got one,

you can call me

Sister Mum too, okay?

Hmm.

Alright, now George is here.

John?

Would you please bless

our meal one last time?

Yes, Sister.

Dear Lord,

We ask you to bless this meal

that Sister Mum has

prepared for us.

For this food, we

give you thanks.

- Amen.

- Amen.

Grant us, O Lord,

we beseech thee a safe journey,

so that under thy guidance and

the guidance of the holy angels,

we may safely reach

our destination.

St. Christopher, the

patron saint of travellers,

pray for us, and

protect us from evil.

In the name of the

Father and the Son...

In the name of the Father, of

the Son and the Holy Spirit.

- Amen.

- Amen.

Will you write to us, John?

Look forward to hearing

of your progress.

And these, these

are your papers.

- Keep them safe, you hear?

- Yes, Sister.

Ohh!

Look, it's a miracle.

It's a shilling.

Just in case.

Thank you, Sister.

Be a good boy.

Ah...

Don't get too excited.

There's no knife in it.

Bye, Johnny.

Just don't worry, children.

With Michael here,

as our new head boy,

you know we're going

to be in safe hands.

Hey, Sister Mum, might

we have a cake tonight?

In honour of Michael's big

day. What do you reckon, boys?

- Rum and raisin? Eh?

- Yes, please, Sister.

Hurry up.

Do your bed.

And make sure you

do my bed as well.

Okay.

Ahh.

Morning, Dom Peter.

It's a lovely day.

Anyway, I told a

lie to a policeman.

Well...

picked a fight, actually.

And, um...

Well, all the children are well.

And as you can see,

we got a new one

last night, so...

Ahh...

Yeah...

Wow!

What a difference

a year makes, hey?

Anyway, um...

Yeah, come on, son. There's

nothing to see here.

Yeah,

and I baptised Johnny.

I'm not sure if it worked,

I know it's a priest thing,

not a nun thing.

Oi! Careful!

It's a year to

the day, you know?

Since he died.

Swearing at us while

we wiped his bum.

Yeah. Well, we haven't been

struck down by lightning, yet.

I think the Lord might be

alright with our

little arrangement.

- Hmm?

- They'll find out.

We will be punished.

- And they'll send another one.

- It doesn't matter to them.

As long as we send the

profit from the harvest.

The Lord will

protect us, Sister.

Where's that new boy gone?

There he

is. Hugging a tree.

Oi!

Hey, cut it out.

Come on. Come on.

Now, you'll break your arm, eh?

Go on.

Go play with the other boys.

"To

the Chief Protector

"of Aborigines, Mr Krank.

"The boy John has been sent to

work on Dermott Downs Station.

"While I appreciate that the war

"has left many

farms light-handed,

"the boy's education will suffer

"as a result of this premature

induction into the workforce.

"After all, John is

only a boy of 13.

"I trust you will see

God's wisdom in this.

"Yours sincerely,

"Dom Peter."

Sit back down.

Uh-oh!

George will have something

to say about that.

Oi, darkie!

Matthew says he

wants to fight you.

Yeah, I'm going

to give it to you.

Fight! Fight!

Fight! Fight! Fight!

Fight! Fight! Fight!

Fight! Fight! Fight!

Fight! Fight! Fight!

Fight! Fight! Fight!

You got him, Matty.

Good morning, my sons!

Ohhh. It's hot in here.

Michael?

What's going on here?

Michael?

Oh, come on. He's so

small, and he's not.

Sister, last night,

I caught Matthew

here stealing food.

- And this was his punishment?

- No.

No?

Well...

You're head boy, now.

So what should

his punishment be?

- Caning.

- Caning?

We haven't caned a

boy in over a year.

Is that what you really want?

Michael, being head boy

brings with it a

certain amount of power.

But it will also

bring you challenges.

It is times like this that the

Devil will test you, Michael.

- You understand?

- Yes, Sister.

Alright.

I'll leave the decision

between you and God.

Ow!

Cut it out!

Come on, that's enough.

Now get ready for church.

Go on, go wash up.

Come on, go wash up.

Matthew, come on.

Matthew!

Give us

this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those who

trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

Again.

Our Father

who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name.

Thy Kingdom come,

thy will be done on

earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day

our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses,

as we forgive those who

trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

...deliver us from evil.

- Amen.

- Amen.

Hey.

Steven, he gets two scoops.

- Oh! He gets two scoops.

- I know.

So what happened this morning?

Hmm? Oh.

I think it's called

'the pecking order'.

Ah, they'll sort it out.

Now,

as you know...

today is the first day

of the olive harvest.

And George will be here to help.

Now,

many of you were here last year,

so you're expected to teach

those children who weren't,

how the harvest works.

Now, in our little family,

everyone contributes.

When we take pride in our work,

we take pride in ourselves.

Good Lord.

Mum!

One, two, three...

Oh, ow!

It shouldn't

sting for too long.

Pssss!

Hey, you like that jam?

That's my jam.

George's jam.

Good boy, Bear.

Good boy, Bear.

Good boy, Bear.

Got

a few bags, George?

- Good start?

- Yeah, good workers.

How's

the new boy doing?

Yeah,

he's doing alright.

Good.

Needs a name, though.

You going to wet his head, too?

We'll just call him

New Boy for now.

You're the boss.

Alright,

it's lunch, boys.

Alright.

Right, who'd like a sandwich?

Michael, would you hand

out the sandwiches?

Alright.

Yes. Come on, Bear.

"To Dom Peter.

That's it.

"He has been sent."

Okay, men, let's

get to that rock wall.

Come this

way. This way here.

Hey.

Go find the boys.

You've got to pull your weight.

"He has been sent.

"We pray that this

ghastly war will soon end,

"but until that day he

must remain in your care.

"We trust, Dom Peter, that

you will guard him wisely,

"as you guard the lost

souls under your charge."

That's it.

Come on, keep 'em coming.

Rocks there.

George, Michael fainted!

Snake!

- Hey? Where? Move, move!

- There!

Kill it.

Go get help. Go, go, go!

Shit!

Come on, boy. Come

on, boy. Come on!

Come on, boy.

Before the snake told Eve

to eat the forbidden fruit,

they were oblivious to evil.

They thought not bad thoughts

and did not bad things.

And they were naked

in their innocence.

Whoa.

Come on.

Well, quit your gawking.

Sister Eileen will put

the radio on for yas.

Hmm, good idea,

Sister. Come on, boys.

That's

Mary, that's me,

and that's Topsy.

♪ Plunging over rugged rocks ♪

♪ Hear the water slide ♪

♪ Bound to be where you are ♪

♪ Dear ones, here am I ♪

♪ A love song of the waterfall ♪

♪ Ooh-ooh ♪

♪ Do-do-do-ooh-ooh ♪

♪ A love song of the waterfall ♪

♪ Ooh-ooh Do-do-do-ooh-ooh ♪

♪ A love song of the waterfall ♪

Morning!

Rise and shine, boys!

There's a lot of

work to do today.

Now Michael will stay in bed.

Perhaps tomorrow he'll join us.

Come on, wake up!

Much to do. Much to do.

Yeah, hold him up. Keep

him tight. Hold it!

Over here! Over here!

Over here! He's over here!

There's a big... There's

a big one in here!

I've got it! I've got it!

Come here! You're

not even looking!

- Oh, wait, it ran away!

- He's just over there!

He's over there! He's over

there! He's over there!

Hmm.

Look, Sister!

George, stop.

- Bear, whoa, Bear.

- Stop, stop!

Hello!

Hello!

- Hello! Ah, my friend!

- Ah, g'day.

Oh! I see you have

our precious cargo.

Yeah, I do, Sister.

I just need a Dom Peter

to be able to sign

for it, please.

He's not here, he's...

Um...

Yeah, I'll sign.

Ah, I'm afraid it

has to be Dom Peter

that takes delivery

of the goods.

Of course, of course.

You know, when I said

Dom Peter wasn't here,

I meant he's not 'all here'.

Oh!

Well...

Wait, um...

I'll see if I can... I'll

see if I can rouse him.

Right.

Yeah...

Yeah, yeah, he...

Is that a '38 or a '39?

- Mum!

- Ah, it's a '39, mate.

Sister Mum!

Is it...

Is it the old crank start?

No, electric start.

Tell you, mate, there

won't be any new models,

not until after this

war is done, anyway.

Yeah.

- When's that going to be?

- Who knows?

Why did you wake me up?

What do you want, you slut?

Sign, just here!

Get out

of here, you dirty slut.

Sign!

I'm not

signing. What's that?

Ow! Get off me, I'm not

signing that, you slut.

Oh!

Go on, go

on, give me a kiss, you slut.

Forgive me, Father.

Come on, if

you're here, come and give me...

Come here

with your paper, you whore.

Just go and give me

a kiss, you slut.

Hmm.

He signed!

- Crazy, huh?

- He signed.

Ah, okay.

Sorry about the language.

Yep, thank you.

- He's not himself.

- Okay, um...

Do you want to give

us a hand with this, mate?

Yes!

Come on, boys.

Come on!

- Wait 'til I see something.

- Come on.

Ow!

Alright,

that's it. Chock him up.

Alright, men, get

around to the front.

Sister, you sounded

just like Dom Peter.

Oh, children, you

just heard some words

that you haven't heard

for quite some time.

And I pray you'll never

have to hear them again.

What is it, Sister?

It's a great

responsibility, Michael.

- Quickly, come on.

- Alright.

Let's

get it into the church.

- Alright, grab a side.

- Okay.

Right, grab a

handle. One, two, three!

Careful,

boys. Watch your fingers.

Right.

Slide him off. Put

him down there.

Put him up. Good men. Good.

Yeah.

Oh, blessed Father.

He's

travelled a long way.

He had to be

hidden from some nasty people,

doing some nasty things.

The Nazis?

He's all that's good,

and all that's holy.

And all that they

seek to destroy.

Who, the nasties?

Yes, Henry, the nasties.

Now it's said

that he can perform miracles.

Right, boys, let us pray.

♪ The Lord's my shepherd ♪

♪ I'll not want ♪

♪ He makes me down to lie ♪

♪ In pastures green ♪

♪ He leadeth me ♪

♪ The quiet waters by ♪

This is Jesus.

♪ My soul he doth ♪

♪ Restore again ♪

♪ And me to walk... ♪

He died on that cross,

so that we might live.

♪ Within the paths ♪

♪ Of righteousness ♪

Slut.

♪ E'en for his own name's sake ♪

George!

- George!

- Hmm.

Will you slaughter a lamb?

We're going to have

a feast tonight.

Come on.

Whoooo-hoooo!

Oh, you're a long way from

home, little lizard eater.

I'm on a good wicket here, boy.

Don't you go stuffing

it up for me.

Go on, get.

Amen! Amen!

Amen! Amen!

Amen, amen, amen!

Lord, blessed are

you for giving us this food.

Blessed are you for

giving us our home.

Blessed... blessed is

Jesus who arrived today.

And blessed is Sister

Eileen and my dad Harry...

Thank you, Michael.

Bless... bless George.

Bless... bless David, Matthew,

Steven, James and Henry.

Bless Johnny,

Christopher and Andrew.

Bless the memory of Dom Peter...

- Amen!

- Amen.

I knew something good was

going to happen today.

Thank you, George.

Amen.

God is good.

"To the

Aboriginal Protector, Mr Krank.

"I am writing regarding

"the progress of the

new boy you sent us.

"After a shaky start, he is

learning to read and to write.

"He has a passion for Christ,

"and I feel that he may

even follow in my footsteps.

"Yours sincerely,

"Dom Peter."

Keep away

from them, boys. Keep away.

Get it out!

Go get it out of here!

I said, get it out!

Oh, no, boys, come

on. Go and sit down.

Don't touch it.

Come on, men!

Amen.

Um...

Um...

Thank you.

Come on!

And... come on!

Hey, Michael, go over that way.

Look after those

fires over there.

Argh!

Come on.

Ahh!

I understand.

Tell me what to do.

Oh, shit.

Just cut it out.

Come on.

Careful.

You might break him.

I said cut it out!

He's sacred!

I know what that kid is.

Come on, men.

Go home!

Go on, get.

...you

were raised from the dead.

I receive Jesus Christ as my

Lord, sent for all our sins.

Dear God, I confess that I

have sinned and done wrong.

I believe that your

son Jesus Christ

took the punishment I deserve

and died on the cross

and I thank you.

I also believe that you

raised him from the dead.

And I receive Jesus Christ

as my Lord and saviour.

I believe that your

son Jesus Christ

took the punishment I deserve

and died on the cross

and I thank you.

You raised him from the dead.

And I receive Jesus Christ

as my Lord and saviour.

God! Dear God, I accept I

have sinned and done wrong.

And I receive Jesus Christ

as my Lord and saviour.

Dear God...

Oh!

Where is he?

What have you done?

What have you done?

Oh.

Amen.

Why?

Why would you do this to us?

Here he is.

Thank you, Sister Mum.

Thank you, Sister Mum.

Thank you, Sister Mum.

Thank you, Sister Mum.

Amen.

Okay.

Stupid, stupid girl.

He

will not abandon you,

for he is your Father.

And as your Father,

he will protect you.

For you are his sons.

He gave you life.

So that you shall

give your life to him.

May your divine assistance

always be with us.

And may the souls of the

faithfully departed...

Sister!

With the mercy of God...

rest in peace.

Amen.

Son?

Dear Lord,

I present this lost boy to you

so that he may be baptised,

and join your flock.

May this water

from your heart

wash away all his sins.

After his resurrection,

Jesus told his disciples,

"Go forth.

"Teach all nations."

"Baptise them."

I baptise thee,

Francis.

I made you these.

Yeah.

"Today,

"we give thanks to God

"for a great

"deliverance.

"The enemy,

"who drove all Europe into war,

"has been finally...

"overcome."

Turn it

around. This way.

Alright, okay, men. Top

of the hill and back.

Alright.

Hey! Leave it there.

Let's go!

Get! Go, boy, go! Go!

- Go, go, go!

- Keep going!

Run!

Run!

What?

Go on. Go and turn around now.

Turn around. Come back.

- No, keep going.

- Come back.

- Come back!

- Keep going!

- Come back! Turn around!

- Keep going!

- Come back!

- Where are they going?

Keep going, keep going.