The Lost City Of Melbourne
In the 1850s, Melbourne was the fastest growing city in the world. “They dreamt big, they built big….it was a city jumping out of its skin”. It became an epicentre of film culture and its hotels, restaurants and cafes became world renowned. However, the attempted ‘modernisation’ of Melbourne in the 1950s destroyed much of the city. Our buildings were deemed too Victorian, the opposite of a modern metropolis, and Whelan The Wrecker’s demolition blitz began. Featuring rare archival film & photography, this film is a revelatory work that allows its audience to reimagine the former glory of the lost city of Melbourne.
Critic Reviews:
- " A valuable documentary about not only how we shape our cities, but how our cities shape us, Gus Berger’s feature recounts, via excellent deployment of archival material, how Melbourne’s grand architectural history was literally destroyed. " – Craig Mathieson (The Age, Australia)
- " Painstakingly put together with heaps of sumptuous archival footage summoned from the National Film and Sound Archives, it’s both a heartbreaking tribute to what was lost and also saved. " – Stephen A. Russell (ScreenHub)