BBQ, The (Stephen Amis, 2018) wr. Stephen Amis, Serge De Nardo, Tim Ferguson, David Richardson, Angelo Salamanca, prod. Tait Brady, Lynne Wilson, Stephen Amis, Deb Fryers; Shane Jacobson, Magda Szubanski, Nicholas Hammond, Frederik Simpson, Manu Feildel, John Stanton, Julia Zemiro, Lara Robinson; comedy; released 22Feb18
I didn't see this. I avoid war films - and also films featuring actors who got the gig because of some *outstanding* personal characteristic.
Synopsis: Suburban everyman Darren ‘Dazza’ Cook finds his passion for the neighbourhood backyard ‘barbie’ thrust into the competitive international arena of BBQ Festivals. But the steaks are high, and Dazza is going to need some expert tuition if he’s going to make it through to the finals.
It’s hard to criticise it as a product, because I do appreciate an Australian family adventure that never overcomplicates itself with any off-beat tangents to solidify itself as 'important art', a crutch that most Australian genre and comedy films tend to do fall into. What annoys me is just how formulaic everything feels, especially with a subject matter (Australian BBQ challenge) that feels like a great platform to really skewer some of the more outlandish aspects of Australian masculine culture. Alex Lines, Film Inquiry.
Garry Gillard | New: 15 August, 2018 | Now: 1 December, 2019