A fascinating mess - this was a famous flop, torn to shreds by David Stratton in The Last New Wave. Jack Hibbert's play was very successful, due in part to the fact it was so theatrical - a wedding reception in which the audience are guests. Hibbert was never that strong on plot but he had a gift for language and the core idea was very relatable.
I've read the play and wasn't that blown away (too many jokes about beer) but it's not hard to see how it could make for a fun night. It's a wedding which everyone can relate to and it's so interactive. (David Williamson directed an initial stage production, incidentally.) And there's no reason a faithful adaptation couldn't have worked - maybe it would be too broad but so was Barry McKenzie.
The problem with this is it's two contrasting styles of films - there is the broad comedy (the boofhead best mate, drunken Irish priest, mother in laws, other yobbos) and a lovely, gentle observation of small town life and ritual. It's not hard to see John Duigan's touch in the latter - you can see The Year My Voice Broke type touches and it's an absolutely legitimate approach. But it has to be all or nothing, I feel - there's the Hibbert section, broad and flashy, siting alongside it awkwardly.
And the idea of having Max Gillies play an English journalist who dresses in drag to crash the hens night is a really, really bad one.
There's some good acting (e.g. Bruce Spence not mugging), some songs, lovely photography and sense of atmosphere, really unfunny jokes. It's all over the place - the wedding only forms a small portion of it.
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