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BaftaBaby 
"Always entranced by cinema."
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 Posted - 10/04/2007 : 23:51:50
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Tempted though I am to pun-cheap with such as This is a pile of shit, or Jacobson takes steaming crap - I have to admit that this Australian mockumentary about a port-a-loo operative is unexpectedly engaging.
This is largely due to the eponymous portrayal by Shane Jacobson an ex-comic with Melbourne's Gang Show. He wrote the script with his off-screen brother Clayton, who also directed and who plays his onscreen brother Dave.
In fact the film is Team Jacobson, with their real father Ronald and Shane's real son Jesse reprising those relationships onscreen. Ronald especially provides an uncompromising portrait of a surly old man, sidelined by life and determined to maintain patriarchal control. Jacobson was nominated for Best Supporting Actor by the Australian Film Academy.
The film - not perfect by any means - succeeds because instead of 'wallowing in excrement,' it concentrates on character. Beefy Shane brings us a well-rounded man in every sense of the word.
His levels of self-awareness separate him from any hint of a David Brent or Borat, though the film is full of comic moments that arise from awkward situations. When Kenny meets a stewardess on his flight to an industry convention in Memphis, the meeting is predicated on his fixing a broken airplane toilet.
When they meet up on terra firma the attraction between them - two lonely people afraid of what they both most desire - is handled with great poignancy and subtlety. That it's punctuated with humour is a bonus: commenting on his enormous portion of steak Kenny explains the inevitable decline of the dinosaurs, "No wonder they're extinct. They hunted the last one down and here it is on my plate!" She offers to show him the town, and he reciprocates by showing her the range of state-of-the-art loos on display at the convention. That she turns it into a good time speaks volumes about them both.
Having chosen the mock-documentary format, the film itself does something Shane never does: it occasionally slips out of character, becoming at times a more conventional narrative. An unintended consequence is a loss of continuity with some of the subsidiary characters.
Since Kenny's firm SplashDown is actually a real company which supplies loos for major events including raucous beach festivals, and horse and car racing, those scenes jump out of the screen. They seem real because they are real. Which brings up the question of the film's backers, none other than SplashDown itself.
I'm not sure of the ethical aspect of that arrangement, but I can't deny it's produced a very entertaining couple of hours.
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Edited by - BaftaBaby on 10/04/2007 23:53:46 |
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Animal Mutha 
"Who would've thunk it?"
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Posted - 10/04/2007 : 23:56:23
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quote:
Originally posted by BaftaBabe
I have to admit that this Australian mockumentary about a port-a-loo operative is unexpectedly engaging.
Does that mean that this pun is accidental then? Surely not. |
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BaftaBaby
"Always entranced by cinema."
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Posted - 10/05/2007 : 00:09:57
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quote:
Originally posted by Animal Mutha
quote:
Originally posted by BaftaBabe
I have to admit that this Australian mockumentary about a port-a-loo operative is unexpectedly engaging.
Does that mean that this pun is accidental then? Surely not.
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Shiv 
"What a Wonderful World"
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Posted - 10/05/2007 : 00:25:31
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Due to receiving 5 damaged DVDs in a row from Bigpondmovies, I have yet to see the whole of this film.
I have seen Shane Jacobson being interviewed a few times, though. When you see him 'for real' his portrayal of Kenny shows itself to be a genuine acting feat, and not a caricature of himself.
I look forward to seeing the whole film at some point.... |
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Demisemicenturian 
"Four ever European"
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Posted - 10/05/2007 : 09:33:20
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Kenny
Not much to add to what Bafta has said, other than that is a very interesting example of product placement! Great performances from Jacobsons Shane and Senior. (Nothing wrong with the other two either.) Yup, a few weaknesses (the nagging and unreasonable ex-wife is a bit of a cliche), but very touching all in all. |
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Kenny
