Narrative, 2008
Director: Cathy Randall
Australia/ English
103 minutes
This coming-of-age story of an awkward Australian/Jewish teen seeking social acceptance has young Esther Blueberg as an outcast in both her snooty private school and her coldly distant family. Then, a chance friendship with public school rebel Sunni and her equally rebellious mom (played by Oscar-nominated actresses Keisha-Castle Hughes and Toni Collete) changes everything.
Despite a quirky feel and promising cute open, the story is excruciatingly typical. "Outcast gains acceptance then turns on those who helped her gain it when the ones who used to tease her now embrace her before finally learning the lesson of true friendship the hard way." The plot is nothing new and is really only anchored by the strength of the performances of Hughes and Collete.
It also falls into the trap some other comedy-dramas do as they try to walk the line between light and dark, comic and tragic, without tumbling over into melodrama. Some, like this one, try to do both to the extreme and thus fail on both sides. You can not kill off a major beloved character one second and then expect the audience to be dancing in circles with the main character in triumph for the removal of her braces a few scenes later.
Lucy Cruell