NOT SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN: November film
Next Film: FRIDAY NOVEMBER 2
Jonah, RYAN KWANTEN, lives in an inner-city house with friends Stevie, SARAH SNOOK, and Gus, RYAN CORR. They earn spare cash by hosting parties at weekends and Jonah, particularly, lives a hedonistic lifestyle, though he misses ex girlfriend Ava, BOJANA NOVAKOVIC.
One night his latest girlfriend, KATHRYN BECK, discovers a lump the size of a pea in a very intimate place - it's diagnosed as testicular cancer, and requires treatment as soon as possible. But that means Jonah will be sterile and he suddenly decides he needs to be a father.
What lifts this Australian romantic-comedy above the level of most of its Hollywood counterparts is the reality of the characters and the situations and the honesty of the film's approach. Once you accept the fact that Jonah has this strong desire for parenthood, everything falls into place. Based on a screenplay by Michael Lucas, based in part on his own experiences, the film adroitly mixes intimate drama and comedy. It's a fine job from first-time feature director Peter Templeman whose short film, THE SAVIOUR, was an Oscar nominee a while back.
Ryan Kwanten has already proved in the underrated RED HILL and GRIFF THE INVISIBLE that he's a talented young actor, but the revelation here is Sarah Snook who is radiant as Stevie, the loyal and helpful house-mate. I thoroughly enjoyed this film.
DAVID: Did you, Margaret?
MARGARET: I did and it's a genre that Australians do attempt but very rarely succeed at.
DAVID: That's true, yes.
MARGARET: And funnily enough, when I talked to Peter Templeman, I said it's basically a romcom and he went, well, no, I think it's far more based in reality than that and, in fact, that comes through, I think, really nicely. I agree with you about Sarah Snook. I think she is so talented, that girl. She's a real Emma Stone lookalike.
DAVID: Yes. Yes.
MARGARET: She's got that same presence on screen. Not classically beautiful but the camera adores her.
DAVID: Yes. Yes.
MARGARET: And she just knows how to treat it.
DAVID: Yes.
MARGARET: I think this is a lovely debut feature. I think Ryan Kwanten is fabulous in his loyalty to filmmaking in this country after establishing such a success for himself in America in TRUE BLOOD.
DAVID: Yes.
MARGARET: And, as you say, with RED HILL and GRIFF THE INVISIBLE and this is the third film he's made back here.
DAVID: And he's doing another one, I think.
MARGARET: And he's lovely onscreen playing this loser slacker.
DAVID: Yes. It's an unlikely sort of hero because he's not the most obvious protagonist that you could warm to.
MARGARET: No.
DAVID: And yet you do because it's such a lovely performance.
MARGARET: Yes. And the party scenes are done well too.
DAVID: Yes, they really are.
MARGARET: And the music's great.
DAVID: Yes.
MARGARET: No, there's a real sense of achievement with this film that I responded to. I'm giving it four stars.
DAVID: I'm with you, Margaret. I'm giving it four as well.
NOT SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN
Review by David Stratton
Jonah, RYAN KWANTEN, lives in an inner-city house with friends Stevie, SARAH SNOOK, and Gus, RYAN CORR. They earn spare cash by hosting parties at weekends and Jonah, particularly, lives a hedonistic lifestyle, though he misses ex girlfriend Ava, BOJANA NOVAKOVIC.One night his latest girlfriend, KATHRYN BECK, discovers a lump the size of a pea in a very intimate place - it's diagnosed as testicular cancer, and requires treatment as soon as possible. But that means Jonah will be sterile and he suddenly decides he needs to be a father.
What lifts this Australian romantic-comedy above the level of most of its Hollywood counterparts is the reality of the characters and the situations and the honesty of the film's approach. Once you accept the fact that Jonah has this strong desire for parenthood, everything falls into place. Based on a screenplay by Michael Lucas, based in part on his own experiences, the film adroitly mixes intimate drama and comedy. It's a fine job from first-time feature director Peter Templeman whose short film, THE SAVIOUR, was an Oscar nominee a while back.
Ryan Kwanten has already proved in the underrated RED HILL and GRIFF THE INVISIBLE that he's a talented young actor, but the revelation here is Sarah Snook who is radiant as Stevie, the loyal and helpful house-mate. I thoroughly enjoyed this film.
Further comments
DAVID: Did you, Margaret?MARGARET: I did and it's a genre that Australians do attempt but very rarely succeed at.
DAVID: That's true, yes.
MARGARET: And funnily enough, when I talked to Peter Templeman, I said it's basically a romcom and he went, well, no, I think it's far more based in reality than that and, in fact, that comes through, I think, really nicely. I agree with you about Sarah Snook. I think she is so talented, that girl. She's a real Emma Stone lookalike.
DAVID: Yes. Yes.
MARGARET: She's got that same presence on screen. Not classically beautiful but the camera adores her.
DAVID: Yes. Yes.
MARGARET: And she just knows how to treat it.
DAVID: Yes.
MARGARET: I think this is a lovely debut feature. I think Ryan Kwanten is fabulous in his loyalty to filmmaking in this country after establishing such a success for himself in America in TRUE BLOOD.
DAVID: Yes.
MARGARET: And, as you say, with RED HILL and GRIFF THE INVISIBLE and this is the third film he's made back here.
DAVID: And he's doing another one, I think.
MARGARET: And he's lovely onscreen playing this loser slacker.
DAVID: Yes. It's an unlikely sort of hero because he's not the most obvious protagonist that you could warm to.
MARGARET: No.
DAVID: And yet you do because it's such a lovely performance.
MARGARET: Yes. And the party scenes are done well too.
DAVID: Yes, they really are.
MARGARET: And the music's great.
DAVID: Yes.
MARGARET: No, there's a real sense of achievement with this film that I responded to. I'm giving it four stars.
DAVID: I'm with you, Margaret. I'm giving it four as well.
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