I saw this as a teenager and it was too young to see it. Being older I get it more though it is very much a piece of its time and place.
It's been beautifully cast in the most part. John Hargreaves is perfect as Don. Ray Barrett is older than him as Mal which is a little jarring but he's superb. So too are Graham Kennedy (what a dramatic debut!), Pat Bishop (making wonders with her role, in what is the best female part because she's got that terrific scene with Don/Hargreaves), Candy Raymond (a knock out but also very good), Veronica Lang, Graeme Blundell, Kit Taylor (again doing great work with a not particularly deeply written part). Claire Binney seems a little out of depth in what is not a great role; Jeannie Drynan has probably the worst part, sulky Kath - she does what she can, but her final outbreak isn't that terrific. Harold Hopkins isn't quite right as Cooley - probably better than Paul Hogan would have been (though props to the boldness of that casting). Jack Thompson really should have played that part.
Some of this is tremendous. The camaraderie, the silliness. Beresford keeps it moving fast, locates the action around the house but sparks it up with sex, nudity, pace, different rooms, a swimming pool, some scenes outside to start off with, a cameo from John Gorton and Beresford himself.
Some scenes are awful such as the women sitting talking about how the men are in bed. The bit where they throw Binney in the pool feels awkwardly non-consensual. There's a bit too much male nudity though that is true of the time.
Candy Raymond is amazing - she should have done more. Had at least a Wendy Hughes level career. Too sexy, maybe? The name? Kennedy is so touching. The gropy/sexist nature of the male characters is softened by casting actors who didn't give off a very sexual vibe (Kennedy, Hargreaves, Blundell, Barrett).
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