The Hopes & Dreams of Gazza Snell

Interpersonal drama is a staple of New Zealand filmmaking. It's a process of telling human stories the vast majority of people can identify with. This makes plenty of sense in a small filmgoing market & also helps universalise local films for an international audience. Debut feature director Brendan Donovan cleverly exploits this angle with his film about a grown man who needs to grow up. A veteran of several short films (including one starring Lee Majors) and several Kiwi TV dramas (he fulfilled many dreams by destroying the nation's capital in an earthquake telemovie), Donovan is a talented storyteller. Not averse to the occasional foray into mystical surrealism, he isn't so much an auteur as a very capable filmmaker who knows how to engage an audience. For this reason, Gazza Snell is an easily accessible movie that doesn't rewrite the parameters of filmmaking. Instead it tells a heartfelt tale of a father of 2 boys obsessed with go-kart racing. When one of the sons winds up in a coma after a nasty – yet exhilarating – crash, Gazza begins the long-overdue process of reconstituting his priorities, both to his sons & long-suffering wife. Along the way, the eldest son enters into a relationship with an Asian girl, allowing Donovan to explore certain comical elements of racial tension in one of Auckland's largest Asian suburbs. Especially funny is a scene in which Gazza inadvertently makes a racial slur while driving, much to the girl's amusement and the son's embarrassment. Aussie actor William McInnes plays Gazza as a likable buffoon, with more than a hint of Homer. TV's Outrageous Fortune star Robyn Malcolm excels as hard done by mum. And the kids are charismatic newcomers. Standout performance is comedian Brendan Lovegrove as, well, Brendan Lovegrove. And the scene of mum cavorting with Gazza's best friend in an empty Para Pool is pure kiwiana. Although it's a relatively straightforward family drama, the action sequences of go-kart races are powerful on the big screen, especially with the sound effects and music cranked up really high. The scene in which the boys jump into a hilltop water tank is also stunning, with Donovan using it poetically late in the film to illustrate a poignant moment in the script. With NZ feature Boy breaking local box office records at the moment, it's a good time for Kiwi films, especially at home. But it's also time for new talent to emerge to add diversity to the country's modest filmmaking industry. Donovan has proved himself capable and ready to be counted. Now he's underway, it's going to be interesting to see how he expands his storytelling skills to carve a progressively more unique path as a filmmaker. He's certainly got the looks to help him on his way.

I think this is a great New Zealand offering. It's a small slice of suburban life which seems perfectly at ease on the big screen.

Slick film making, a tight script, great acting, and a gripping story means you'll laugh and cry as you go on a journey that is set in suburban Howick.

It's a story about ordinary lives that become extraordinary as we get caught up in their drama. A father learns a hard lesson when his youngest son is hurt in a go-karting accident and the eldest son Marc deals with some serious guilt because he believes he's responsible for the accident.

It's a classic case of a dad wanting success for his sons but for Gazza it comes at a cost. I'm not going to spoil the story and tell you too much but I am going to recommend that you get along and see it for yourselves.

Robyn Malcolm (Outrageous Fortune) and Williams McInnes (Look Both Ways)are perfectly cast. The striking Josh McKenzie who plays eldest son Marc has potential Hollywood heartthrob written all over him. Auckland Art Director Phil Ivey (In My Father's Den, Lord of the Rings)has caught the nuances of the suburban setting aptly and the race-track scenes make for seat-of-your-pants action. One scene that stands out in my mind is when Marc takes his go-kart out onto the mean streets of Howick by night. It reminded me of hooning in Mum's car (something Howickites will relate to) only much louder and faster.

If you like stories about real characters reacting to plausible life drama you'll enjoy this film. Brendan has an immediate and captivating film-making style. This may be a result of his years working as a commercial director in New York.

I hope he gets to make a lot more films about stories like this. They're real and they're about people like us. Served up with that Donovan vision makes for interesting and entertaining cinema.

While many films around are trying to be big and fantastical (and there is nothing wrong with that), this film focuses on the importance of relationships, family and love, and the most important message of all – protect and love those closest to you.

While the film kicks off introducing a man that smothers his sons with expectation and who has a seemingly endless reserve of optimism, we quickly begin to see ordinary lives come apart at the seems.

William McInnes plays the title role of Gazza Snell, and is certainly scruffier than the average leading man, but tucked in between all the hurt and the jokes, the character development and the across-the-board terrific performances show an unexpectedly sharp look at the survival instincts of a working-class family.

Robyn Malcolm performance is wonderful and unexpected as the long- suffering wife whose often panicked face shows you what a dreamer without a dream looks like.

The elder son's performance is something to be noted, and the part of the film I enjoyed most was the relationship he forms with a local Chinese girl. This relationship added a whole other element to the film and shows that there is something beautiful about a relationship that has its beginning at the crossroads of hope and despair

Though this story of Gazza, tucked behind the wheel while the rest of the family pushes, might seem like an unlikely vehicle for transformation this film really is a touching human drama, a tale about genuine faith, and one that gripped me to the very end.

I'm sorry, but after watching the world premiere of this film, a film that has been seven years in the making, I was left with only one thing to say: is this the best you can do, New Zealand? That might seem an ignorant and crass comment about a low-budget New Zealand film, but I just feel that to really make it on the world stage this country needs to step up its game and make eye-catching pieces of cinema, not mediocre works that would sit more comfortably as TV fodder.

Sure, there's nothing terribly wrong with the film, but there's nothing outstanding about it either. Maybe my mood was soured by watching this back to back with Sergio Leone's Once Upon A Time In The West – which is a long time to sit in a cinema with its almost 3 hour running time. This film was set and shot in the East Auckland suburb of Howick (so Once Upon A Time In The East?), and is a melodramatic tale of a man obsessed with the racing achievements of his two sons.

And here's where the story falls down. The script, by director Brendan Donovan and David Brechin-Smith, concerns itself far too much with the melodrama of the family unit and – probably due to the nature of the event that causes the drama of the piece – there's very little left to laugh at. The writers have attempted to portray the father figure of the title as a lovable rogue, but his machinations leave little to empathise with, and it's left to the minor characters to provide any level of enjoyment.

I'm sure Donovan can go on to do bigger and better things. He just needs to start off with a stronger script next time. Still, if his career as a film director does start to wane, he could always fall back on to stand-up comedy. After a very funny introduction to the film, Donovan was joined by the rest of the principle cast after the screening for a Q&A session. Around 3 or 4 questions in, an elderly lady in the audience stepped up and creaked something along the lines of "I thought the racing scenes were far too loud, and probably beyond the legally allowed limits..." Butting in, Donovan stepped up to the mike and said "Excuse me, could you please speak up, I think I've gone deaf."

An exceptional story is one that captures the audience from the start."The Hopes and Dreams of Gazza Snell" breaks into full-speed action and within minutes our hearts are pounding and we are left gasping for breath. It is a classic suburban kiwi drama dealing with deep personal issues,unfulfilled dreams,marriage crisis and most importantly family love. Highlights for me were the heartfelt scenes between father and son, the humorous bill-board scene and the beautiful and clever symbolism in the shots of the boys swimming in the water tank. This film will capture your heart and leave you with something to think about for days. Congratualtions!