THREE SUMMERS
Image: Photo: David Dare Parker
Australian produced comedies have always had difficulty making audiences laugh, but what starts off as a somewhat cheesy comedy with few laughs slowly builds into an engaging and feel-good film.
Written and directed by Ben Elton, the story is set at a Western Australian summer music festival affectionately known as ‘The Westival’ over three consecutive summers. An array of characters are introduced and audiences journey through the transitions in their friendships, attitudes and notably the romantic status of the young leads played by Robert Sheehan and Rebecca Breeds.
Well known Australian actors including John Waters, Deborah Mailman, Magda Szubanski and Michael Caton portray an assortment of likeable but stereotyped characters which always seem to appear in Aussie films of this genre.
Underneath the comedy, lie many significant and relatable themes including alcoholism, betrayal, status of the indigenous population and refugees, and notably the acceptance and respect for all cultures.
The ‘all just too good to be true’ finale may seem contrived, but audiences who are passionate about happy endings should feel that all the character’s storylines were satisfactorily resolved. (MMo)
★★★
