BY: Richard Clune Source: dailytelegraph.com.au
While the network hopes the six-part series, Brothers In Arms, will rival the success of Nine's Underbelly, producers have kept details under wraps amid fears of reprisal attacks from the bikie gangs depicted in the program.
The actors and locations involved in the series were cloaked in secrecy by production company Screentime until filming was completed.
"There was some apprehension, yes," Screentime's Des Monaghan said.
"But did we expect to be physically attacked? No."
The program, expected to air early next year, explores the events leading up to the brutal shootout between the Comancheros and Bandidos in the car park of Milperra's Viking Tavern on Father's Day in 1984.
Six club members lay dead following the bloody battle, along with 14-year-old bystander Leanne Walters, who was killed by a stray bullet. A further 28 people were wounded, 20 requiring hospitalisation.
Oh shit. This sorta thing is only gonna open old wounds... the story is a sad event and sooo many people are still living with the aftermath.
The story is maybe better suited to a one hour documentary (if they must), but I think a 'mini series' is very poor taste.
I know everyone hates the conspiricy theory but isn,t it funny how the last two or three months anything that can be linked to a patch has made front page news But if it was 2 towel heads or some dick heads at a beach it wouldn,t of even made the paper
i know a couple of the guy's on the set i look after there bike's for them & they told me it wasn't very well made, of course what bike movie/doc is made too a good character for joe pubic too say were just low life's on motorbike's, since 1955 the wild 1 nothing changed,
I really don't like people making movies about criminal activities and it is sad that people died on that day.
But its all about money in the end and they really don't care how they portray the event on the TV.
Also if this was about middle eastern people or Aboriginal people portrayed in the movie it would be banned.
Some years ago there was a doco on ABC wher a guy was trying to raise funds to shoot the story loosely based on the book by Sandra Harvey and Lindsay Simpson. He interviewed key Commanchero and Bandido members at the time and there was agreement from them of sorts to assist as long as the story was told accuratley. Obviouslty that guy never raised the capital. A lot of the interviews were filmed at hotels and homes and fetured the Members clearly identified and shown.
Heres the ABC documentary detail for the prviously shown doco http://www.abc.net.au/tv/guide/netw/200502/highlights/248780.htm
I am surprised the story about this current film being shot took so long to get out as they were active in certain circles looking for extras who "fit the casting bill" not necessarily actors but alos people for extra roles who looked likie "bikers". That was going on for months.
Yeh i saw that doco, i thought it was good because at least it was the real people
Big difference between showing minority groups in a more positive light and saying that things would be banned.
Surely we would all like to see balanced views on everything that might be a bit controversial.............we obviously don't but that would be the aim.
Unfortunately the media will go down the populist path and we're all to blame for that. It will remain that way while the majority look to ACA/TNT/HS for the "truth"
I read the book Brothers in Arm's many years ago, its the only book ive read from start to finish, dont know how much of it was fact but it basically gave a step by step lead up to fathers day, and didnt seem to favour anyone, which made it very believable, i'm sure we will all watch the mini series for whatever our reasons are ... i'm suggesting, if ya into reading and that book is still available, get a copy asap and read it before the series comes to air and see how they compare, might be a good way to get half educated before we decide on whats bullshit and whats not.
EDIT: I'm expecting the mini series to favour one side, the anti biker brigade.
I was there on the day. My brand new 1984 Softail at home. Went there with a mate in his EH wagon. We were chasing J bits and the wagon would have been useful. Leanne had just sold me a raffle ticket in a bottle of Jim or Jack, walked a coupla paces,and that was the end of her life. She copped a wild shot that could easily have been me.I was only a few metres away. My time wasn't up. The poor girl was dead before she hit the ground. After dodging fucking bullets for half a fucking hr or more, I survived. How lucky can a bloke be? (and lots of others) I was talking to the Comanchero's for a bit and asking about one of me mates that was Nom for them. I wandered off and 10 mins later, those guys were all laying there dead. At one stage I was standing alone in the middle of the parking lot,and a bloke, about 20m away, staring at me,blood pissin out of a head wound,and a pump action in his hand. Fark!! the ol sphincter was quivering there a bit! Then he realized I'm not who he's after,or "one of them",then he squatted down behind a car and started firing again. I bolted.
No more details.Fuck it. Me and me mate finally got outta there after 9 that night, about 6hrs after it started. I can remember 6 stubbies and a few sleeping tabs every night for months afterwards. I was living alone then,which didn't help matters,but a nurse living in the flat upstairs got me some good "knockout" stuff that put me lights out big time.
Hopefully, I'll be elsewhere when that movie is on. I definitely don't wanna see it. I have enough flashbacks as it is! After reading Brothers In Arms, halfway through,I threw it down. Bullshit.
If you aren't keen on watching a movie that's entirely for the $ and facts don't give a rats arse, then don't watch it. Simple. I like watching SOA, now there's a bunch of wannabe's. But I like watching it. It's entertainment with HARLEY FUCKEN DAVIDSON'S in it.
Fathers Day 1984 R.I.P.
i can put my hand up & say i was there as well on that day i was in a shit bike club @ that time in my life i won't go into it but i can thro a stone from my place & hit that pub's roof lived in this area all my life ,
iv'e only been back for 1 beer once since, since it's been re-yuppiefied i will never step foot in there again as long as my arse points too the ground , biking change forever after that day
Why should this be left alone?
The ones doing the shooting made it public, when they conducted a war in public place. The senseless waste of an innocent 14 year old girl deserves public condemnation, that's one fact that won't change however you spin it.
I managed to buy a sissy bar and me mate bought a leather tool bag before it all come down. I just polished the sissy bar recently and have got it on a shelf.It once was on me softy but I didn't like it.
I'll concentrate on remembering the good part about the meet . About 1/2 an hr's worth.
I used to live with a bloke by the name of Bernie.
He was a mate back before this happened and later on in life, someone told me that he was one of the Original Bandidos in Sydney and that he was at this Tragedy. I never saw him again, maybe he was there, have my doubts though.
