Summer Heights High

Chris Lilley is a comedic genius. His first series, "We Can Be Heroes" was a excellent slice of humour and realistic satire. He has pulled it off again with Summer Heights High, a mockumentary following three different people who attend the high school Summer Heights High.

We have Jonah, probably the most loved character, a 13 year old boy from Tonga who has some big issues. He has no respect for his teachers and he constantly swears and graffitis. His only joy seems to come from Gumnut College where is is developing his own personal story.

Ja'mie is a transfer student from Hillford Girls Grammar School, an extremely upper class school which is totally different from SHH, which is your average public school. She befriends a group of girls and is constantly looking down on everyone and trying to organize events that will lift school spirit.

Finally, there is Mr. G (my personal favourite), an eccentric and very feminine Drama teacher. His methods are odd, he is extremely full of himself and his new musical "Annabel: The Musical" is about ecstasy.

We follow these characters and all their misfortunes and aspirations. The show is always funny but it is always realistic. It captures everything perfectly from the state of public schools (no offense), students with ADD, what people from private school are like and how teachers cope with hardships. Chris Lilley is an immensely talented man and I cannot wait to see what he does next.

5/5

When I've heard about this when it first appeared,I was thinking it was going to be as pathetic and dumb like 'Neighbours' on TV(if you're a foreinger who hasn't seen the TV show Neighbours,don't watch it anyway, it's very horrible),but when I got Summer Heights High on DVD,I was completely wrong,it was excellent.

Reasons why: 1.The main characters,Jonah,a delinquent break dancing problem child, Mr.Gee,an ego-driven gay Drama teacher with delusional showbiz dreams,and Ja'mie,a high-class bitchy private school girl on a student exchange were VERY clever,witty and laugh-out-loud funny.Non of their talents in the show have declined,they were just perfect.

2.The humour.Greatly hilarious.The jokes never got old,they were modern.

I definitely recommend this show to anyone who loves Australian comedy and something realistic.

I watched this TV show when I was in high school in New Zealand and it was like a mirror to everything that was happening! It was so authentic rather than a glossy Hollywood production. There were people like these characters in all our school and that made it even funnier. They are all outrageous but are not one-dimensional as they are explored and developed throughout the series.

Summer Heights High is pure comedic and satirical genius, but also a throwback to a time we could have a laugh and poke fun at ourselves without taking said selves to seriously. This show is the antithesis of lame modern comedy that's based around slapstick humour and talking really loudly. In modern times, rarely does a show dare to touch on stereotypes, race and other "sensitive" issues, but Summer Heights High does it perfectly while sharply reminding society of a time when the rage machine didn't find a way to be insulted or triggered by anything and everything. Perfect characters, perfect script and intensely funny. As good as it gets.

Chris Lilley, who has acted as several different characters in other shows like Big Bite and We Can Be Heroes, demonstrates his great acting ability. He has researched students and teachers at schools, which was good move. Just go to any school and you can see Ja'mie and Jonah and maybe even Mr. G!

This mockumentary does not only demonstrate realistic characters but some hilarious scenes! Perhaps Mr. G gets the best ones, but although also some scenes are a bit painful to watch (mainly Ja'mie) this works well in the recipe of the show because of its humour.

I would recommend this to anyone who can stand listening to a bit of swearing-and the ending is one that will not be forgotten. Even if you are not remotely interested in public high schools it is a fantastic and highly enjoyable watch.

10/10