How to Watch the Adam Goodes Documentaries "The Final Quarter" and "The Australian Dream"

You’re gonna want to write these dates down.

Update: If you're looking for where to watch the film right now, we'll refer you to this more current article! The original article follows below.

Remember when Sydney Swans legend Adam Goodes was booed out of the AFL 35 years ago?

(*Presses fingers to earpiece*) What’s that? It was barely four years ago? Yikes.

The AFL great stepped away from Aussie Rules in 2015 when he became the target of persistent, racially vilifying abuse.

The former Australian of the Year and two-time Brownlow medallist declined an opportunity to participate in that year’s AFL Grand Final parade, so toxic had the abuse from "fans" become.

A year later, AFL CEO Gillon McLachlan apologised to Goodes for acting "too slowly" in addressing the racism and hostility from crowds.

Well, the AFL’s handling of this bleak period is about to go under the microscope again thanks to not one but two documentaries focusing on Goodes’ final months playing for the Swans.

In fact, to pre-empt any blowback, the AFL and its 18 clubs issued another apology in June "for our failures during this period."

"We will stand strongly with all in the football community who experience racism or discrimination," their statement added.

"We are unified on this, and never want to see the mistakes of the past repeated."

Hopefully both The Final Quarter and The Australian Dream will inspire all Australians to re-evaluate how we acted during this extremely recent period of our history, and forge a better way forward.

How to Watch The Final Quarter in Australia

The first Goodes doco out the gate is The Final Quarter, from director Ian Darling, which premiered at this year’s Sydney Film Festival and earned a standing ovation from attendees. It has been acclaimed for the way in which it solely uses archival footage to compile a visual poem of sorts (similar to the brilliant sports doco Senna).

You can check the trailer out below:

It is next set to play the Perth Revelation International Film Festival on 8 July. However, Aussies elsewhere in the country won’t have to wait long to see it for themselves.

The Final Quarter will air on Channel 10 and WIN on Thursday 18 July at 7:30pm. Save the date (though it’ll likely become available to rewatch on Ten Play afterwards). (Update: It is now on TenPlay, though it expires within 30 days of its airing.)

Darling also intends to supply schools and sports clubs around the country with copies of the flick too.

How to Watch The Australian Dream in Australia

Though you may at first wonder why we need two docos about Goodes’ exit from the AFL, you’ll definitely want more after sitting through The Final Quarter. Thankfully, we’ve got The Australian Dream to look forward to, written by Goodes’ fellow trailblazer, journalist Stan Grant.

The Australian Dream follows Goodes’ career from the time before he was drafted to his current state as an activist for Indigenous rights. The movie reportedly also examines the idea of Australian identity and how our country deals with race, with contributions from Nova Peris, Linda Burney, Nicky Winmar, Michael O’Loughlin, Eddie McGuire and … Andrew Bolt? Okay then.

The Australian Dream also differs from The Final Quarter in that it features a new interview with Goodes himself. Audiences in Victoria will be able to see it at the Opening Night Gala of the Melbourne International Film Festival on 1 August.

It then opens in Australian cinemas, nationwide, on 22 August. Save that date too.

Header Image: Shark Island Productions