[3] The film brought Tom Kruse to public notice, and resulted in his being appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) on 1 January 1955.
[4] In simple terms, the film follows a "typical" journey made by Tom Kruse, from Marree to Birdsville, some 325 miles away, showing the various people he met along the Track and the sorts of obstacles he faced.
In fact, sometimes described as a docudrama, the film was closely scripted: it comprises a number of re-enactments and a 'lost children' story, rather than chronicling an 'actual' trip.
Australian Screen curator, Lauren Williams, suggests that the film "can be read like a collection of travelling vignettes along the Birdsville Track, embracing the experiences of these people and the isolated 'never-never' land they occupy".
[5] Lauren Williams, writes that "the film reconfirms settler anxieties about the outback as a place of isolation, brutal indifference, danger and timelessness" but at the same time presents "the characters in the landscape as survivors, people who endure, battlers with hearts of gold".
[5] John Heyer and Ross Wood, his cinematographer, had both worked for the Commonwealth Film Unit prior to joining Shell.
While the film is highly praised and granted 'classic' status, some critics question specific aspects, most commonly the 'Lost Children' sequence.
The film, released only in 16mm format, premiered in Adelaide, South Australia, on 5 May 1954, at a charity event to aid the Crippled Children's Association.