Dirty Deeds (David Caesar, 2002) wr. David Caesar, dp Geoffrey Hall; Bryan Brown, John Goodman, Toni Collette, Sam Neill, Sam Worthington, Felix Williamson, Kestie Morassi, 98 min., national release 18 July; Best Production Design AFI Awards 7 November 2002: Chris Kennedy; Best Costume Design AFI Awards 7 November 2002: Tess Schofield; Brian McFarlane, "Dirty deeds and good clean fun: some recent Australian caper movies", Metro, 140, 2004: 48-52
The Mafia - and John Goodman! - in Australia; and Bryan Brown does not get acted off the screen: all good fun.
It's not entirely clear on the evidence whether David Caesar set out to make a comedy, a crime movie or a darkly funny drama, which is perhaps why he has ended up with a film that combines all three. ... The script zings, the cast sings and the music rocks; what more can you ask of a Saturday night at the movies? Andrew L. Urban, Urban Cinefile.
For the most part, Caesar dexterously juggles the elements of suspense and humor. He keeps the pace fast, and directs in punchy, highly visual style, with tilted camera angles and complicated editing wipes designed to parallel the rolling images on the poker machines. Colors are highly saturated to give the film the look of pics made during the late '60s. David Stratton, Variety.
Garry Gillard | New: 10 November, 2012 | Now: 4 December, 2019