MovieTime

Review

by Jason Di Rosso

A group of sad, frustrated men form a support group to discuss their emotional problems in this moody drama from first-time Australian director and co-writer Michael Joy. Set mostly in a Sydney loungeroom, with glimpses of the outside world presented as vignettes or sequences put to music, the film feels a little like watching a group of professional actors workshopping an idea. The key problem here is that the ensemble never really gels -- the tone of the performances is uneven and the pacing feels off. The individual stories are also predictable: there's the dad who can't communicate with his son; the stitched-up corporate type with a brutal, violent streak; the former judge who finds it impossible to look critically upon his own lonely life. While this smorgasboard of male dysfunction no doubt offers something for everyone, the film isn't bigger than the sum of its parts and offers few great insights or dramatic watersheds.

Director: Michael Joy
Cast: Grant Dodwell, Don Reid, Paul Gleeson, Steve Rodgers, Steve Le Marquand, Paul Tassone, William Zappa
Producer: John L. Simpson
Script: Michael Joy, John L. Simpson
Cinematographer: Geoffrey Wharton
Editor: Stuart Morley
Music: Haydn Walker
Running time: 104
Australian distributor: Titan View
Language: English
Classification: MA15+