Dirty Deeds

Sad to say, but despite a fantastic cast, great design and some genuine laughs, "Dirty Deeds" is ultimately a disappointment. A frenetic comedy set in the Sydney mob scene circa 1969, David Caesar's tale of cross and double-cross does admittedly have a lot going for it if you're not too picky. Bryan Brown has one of his most engaging roles in years as mobster Barry Ryan, head of the pokie rackets in Sydney. Toni Collette is equally good as his no-nonsense wife, while a solid cast of Aussie professionals such as William MacInnes, Sam Neil and Paul Chubb fill out an amusing ensemble. Even the get-a-US-release stunt casting of John Goodman, as a Brown's even-tempered American rival fits nicely.

In addition, the design of the film is wonderfully evocative of late sixties Australia, complete with garish curtains, funky wallpaper, beehives and bowler hats. The soundtrack, produced by You Am I frontman Tim Rogers, is an amusing combination of vintage Oz-rock oldies (the title tune, performed by AC/DC and covered in the end credits by You Am I with Tex Perkins)and knowing modern-day covers. But there are flaws, very big ones on both sides of the camera.

While he demonstrates a keen eye for local colour and ocker humour, (witness "Idiot Box" and "Mullet") David Caeser is no action filmmaker. The car chase scenes are very poorly shot and flatly edited, with little sense of perspective or coherence. The low budget shows in a severely unconvincing opening sequence, set in Vietnam, but looking all-too-obviously like rural New South Wales. His screenplay works hard to pull off a "Snatch"-style multiple-whammy climax, but the pacing is off and there isn't enough build-up for it to really work. The romantic sub-plot featuring Sam Worthington (as Brown's straight-arrow nephew) and Kestie Morassi (as Brown's mistress) is flat and entirely predictable.

Relative newcomer Worthington sadly sticks out like a sore thumb among the otherwise distinguished ensemble with an inexpressive, lifeless performance, which undermines certain crucial scenes. Morassi is however a definite find and will certainly be one to watch in the future.

A lot of excellent talent has gone into making "Dirty Deeds" and that only serves to make the end result an even greater disappointment.

"Dirty Deeds" takes a nostalgic view of the Sydney of the late nineties as we are taken along to meet a local gangster who is ruthless against his enemies, or the people trying to invade his territory. The action takes place in King Cross, an area where night life was the main attraction.

David Caesar and his cinematographer, Geoffrey Hall, created a film that seems to have been shot in that era, as they have given the movie a faded look that works well with the story they are telling. The film has some funny moments that come at unexpected moments. The inside joke seems to be about how to really make a good pizza, something that might not have been done at the time.

The film makers have to be congratulated in bringing a brilliant cast together for the movie. Bryan Brown plays the kingpin Barry Ryan with equal amount of meanness and humor. Mr. Brown is an actor that is always consistent in anything he does and he should be seen more often. Toni Collette is one of the best actresses working in films, who is at home in drama as well as comedy, and she has a rare opportunity to show her talent playing Barry's wife, Sharon. John Goodman is good as the American mafioso who is outsmarted by his Aussie counterpart. Sam Worthington is fine as the naive Darcy and Kesty Moressi also does a good job as Margaret. The only one that has nothing to do is Sam Neill.

"Dirty Deeds" works well as a drama and a comedy because there are elements of both in it thanks to the way David Caesar presents his material on the screen.

Ah, yeah!

This is a nicely paced caper and its only real crime is the weak ending.

It's been criminally undersold here, and sad to report I was alone in the dark corner of the multiplex I saw it in. As all the comments here are Australian and a year old, the film has obviously been leaked late to the rest of the world in advance of its video or dvd release. This is lacklustre treatment of a little gem.

First and most important, you don't need to be Australian to understand the dialog. I wouldn't fault any of the performances, which pretty much match the characters' function in the film. Bryan Brown and Sam Neill stand out, inevitably, but John Goodman and Toni Colette are sound in support.

I smiled from the moment this started to the closing credits, laughed out loud more than once, and salute the repeated use of "bouf-head" as a term of endearment.

Saw this stumbling my way through OZ on holiday and really glad i did - it's fast, funny and full of action.

I had no idea before i saw this of the real history of the slot machine wars, so it was good to learn about that but FAR MORE IMPORTANTLY this is just a great night out and makes you leave the cinema wishing you could remember more of the many really good lines.

The acting is fantastic throughout but John Goodman is just brillant. Every time i see him in stuff i'm amazed at his ability and here he gives a really moving performance. The young bloke is really good too, and some of the guys the filmakers have found to play small time hoods have fantastic faces.

The direction is cool, the script really is fast and funny and its got a great soundtrack as well. Hope this gets shown in the UK so all my mates can see it to?

True story, in the 1960s the American government was trying to control Vietnam and the American Mafia wanted to take over organised crime in Australia.

Both failed, we know about Vietnam, this movie fictionalises what happened in Australia and uses it as a metaphor for what happened in Vietnam (and what is happening in Iraq today).

It is fun, it is very Australian (it has Bryan Brown in it, what more can I say), it downplays Australian criminals abilities but shows them as brutal thugs capable of some quick thinking.

It is not an American bashing movie and has a pro-American message and an Anti-American message that Americans could learn from. Which is basically, America we like you, we like your Pizza, but if you want to go out in the world you got to learn to play nice because the rest of the world is much tougher than you and will scone you if you don't.

It also lovingly shows how backward Australia was in the 1960s (no pizza, no colour TV), so everyone gets a fair suck of the sav (if you understand my meaning).