Bill Russo Movies
- 1991
Fans of Dame Edna and her ilk may find the home-grown corny Australian humor of The Castanets right up their alley. This documentary is designed especially to please the fans of this extremely popular ten-member comedy group and contains portions of three performances in Bondi. The dramatic conceit framing these performances is that a club manager is looking desperately for some inexpensive bookings and reluctantly goes with the Castanets, who are decidedly on the cheesy (and cheap) side. Scenes from their standard nightclub act follow, including a raucous male "wet underwear" contest, and comedy music bits include a patter song I've Been Everywhere, composed almost entirely of tongue-twisting Australian place names. ~ Clarke Fountain, Rovi
Jane Campion's directorial debut feature, the made-for-TV drama Two Friends, is the story of two 14-year-old girls drifting apart in working-class Australia. Told with an inverted narrative, the friendship is dissolved at the beginning and then moves toward its highest point. As the film opens, high school student Louise (Emma Coles) gets a letter from Kelly (Kris Bedenko), who writes about trying to live on her own after dropping out of school and moving away from home. Louise is disinterested in her former friend, preferring to practice the piano. In episodic segments titled by the change of seasons, the story captures the memorable and distressing moments between the two girls. Both children of divorces, Kelly finds no support from either her lenient father or her demanding stepfather, who refuses to let her attend the same high school as Louise, because he feels it is too elitist. Kelly finds some comfort in Louise's mom, a kindhearted and helpful single parent who lets the girls throw a Christmas party. Two Friends received a theatrical release in the U.S. after the success of Campion's The Piano (1993). ~ Andrea LeVasseur, Rovi
- Starring:
- Emma Coles, Kris Bidenko, (more)
