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Herald Rating: * * *
Cast: Brenda Blethyn, Khan Chittenden, Rebecca Gibney, Emma Booth
Director: Cherie Nowlan
Running time: 109 mins
Rating: M
Screening: Rialto
Verdict: An odd, funny little film filled with a strange mix of everyday reality and melodrama
Clubland is a charming coming-of-age Aussie film that got a name for itself at the Sundance Film Festival in 2007.
Written by English-born Australian resident Keith Thompson, Clubland is one of those Australian films that fondly takes the mickey out of ordinary, everyday Aussies. It was written specifically for Golden Globe-winning actress Brenda Blethyn (Pride and Prejudice, Secrets and Lies) who happily took on the lead role of Jeannie Dwight.
Jeannie is a British comedienne who gave up her rising career to immigrate to Australia 25 years ago with her now ex-husband John, a one-hit wonder country singer. She's the overbearing, controlling and manipulative mother of 21-year-old Tim (Khan Chittenden) and his young disabled brother Mark (Richard Wilson), and Blethyn has the right amount of shrill, comedy and hysterics needed for the role.
The Dwights live in the western suburbs of Sydney where by day Jean is a cafeteria worker and by night she traipses her old school comedy routine filled with crass sexual innuendo around the club comedy circuit.
Tim is his mother's constant companion and driver, and doesn't have much of a social, let alone sex, life, but when the gorgeous, sassy and insecure Jill (Emma Booth) comes along, life starts looking up.
Surprisingly Jill isn't put off by Tim's embarrassed attempts at intimacy, or his confession his parents are "entertainers", and it's not long before his mother starts making his new relationship as difficult as possible.
While Blethyn's hysterics become a little weary, she is still the star performer and flies through this film with ease.
Rising star Khan Chittenden also manages to shine as the shy, sensitive Tim, sandwiched between two loud and stroppy women, and provides laughs and the more tender moments in the film.
New Zealand-born actress Rebecca Gibney appears as Jeannie's lush friend Lana, but you'll have to look carefully as she's almost unrecognisable.
As a whole, Clubland feels awkward. There are some great scenes filled with startlingly funny and unpredictably honest moments, in particular around Tim's efforts to lose his virginity, but as the film builds to its climax it becomes histrionic. The sudden sentimental Hollywood ending sees the characters and the film lose both their honesty and quirky edge. That said, it should at least put a smile on your face.
