Mabo: The Name and Face of Native Title: A Question of Recognition

Trevor Graham's award-winning biographical documentary Mabo: Life of an Island Man makes a convincing case for seeing the events proceeding from the landmark Mabo judgment as a DEFACEMENT of Eddie Mabo's name. In the opening sequence, the director/narrator makes the point that although 'Mabo' is a household word in Australia, very little is known about the leading litigant. The overuse of the name as a synonym for land rights has made it unrecognisable to those who knew Mabo. As one of Mabo's daughters says in the film, 'It's just a word now. They don't know the person whose name it is.' As a cultural response to the depersonalising violence of over-naming, the film aims 'to give the name a face', to reveal 'the man behind the name'. Setting itself the task of closing the gap between name and face, judgment and historical subject, this remarkable film uses the face as the image through which we are able to recognise and honour Eddie Mabo.