A Few Best Men

It is good to see that Australia is returning to the comedy idiom after such a long absence since Muriel's Wedding and Priscilla going back to the early 90's Having said that although I found it quite amusing the first half an hour was a bit flat and until it got into the silliness that most of the comedy consisted of it did not hit the mark. Olivia Newton John surprises in a comedy performance as mother of the bride and it was good to see this Australian icon back on the big screen. The absurdity of some of the situations that unfold is certainly reminiscent of Death at a Funeral but falls short of that comedy gem. Nevertheless it is worth going to see and has more laughs than some American so called comedies

A few best men is a movie I picked up on the side from a course-mate at school. He seemed to have a taste for laugh out loud comedy like I do so my interest was to see it after he did.

Yes, it may seem cliché d, it may seem borrowed in major parts from previous Hollywood block-busters (the hangover in particular and all best men movies in general), and it may have the stereotypical characters that make up the ensemble of a groom's-best-friends kind of movie; but my is it a hilarious movie.

The story was not wholly original, even basically unoriginal in every sense of the word but its a comedy and it does hit its mark in that regard. It comes on right in your face, gets dreary and downright boring in places but picks up in spectacular fashion. If you are patient enough just as I was when I saw it, you'll get my point. As a whole, it doesn't come close to other movies of its kind in terms of cast and plot but with its laugh out loud moments, it can rival any or most Hollywood comedies and I assure you Hollywood directors could learn a thing of two from this bunch.

Its greatest strength is not in its characters, not in the cast either but in the cinematography and screen-play. Shot in Australia, it does well to capture major beautiful scenery and has good shot sequences.

There are standout and believable moments for most of its characters and their actors though most notably Xavier Samuel. This is the only other media I've seen him in outside of the Twilight: eclipse and he does a decent performance as the groom. Laura Brent was also beautiful and captivating as the bride. Look out for the best man's speech that makes good work of some intertwined British/Aussie humour delivered in a hilarious fashion it will basically crack your ribs.

It showed promise got flat at the middle and got downright hilarious in the third quarter. I'd recommend it for anyone who is a fan of dirty but plain laugh out loud comedy.

Billed as the "Aussie Hangover", this surprisingly crude comedy is more hit-and-miss than its American counterpart. There's certainly no shortage of gags – the humour comes fast and loose with both verbal wittiness and gross-out physical stunts – but plot predictability and some truly dreadful acting gradually diminish the movie's success. Whilst no-one from the cast really soars, new kid on the block Xavier Samuel (The Loved Ones, Anonymous, New Moon) acquits himself nicely as the love-struck protagonist and Love Actually's Kris Marshall is consistently funny as his immature pommy groomsman. On the flipside: Olivia Newton-John overplays her wild-child mother-in-law to the point of embarrassment, Rebel Wilson's more wooden than the Horse of Troy, and Laura Brent's performance as the bride suggests she would've been more comfortable in an episode of 'Neighbours' than in a feature film. Doesn't leave a lasting impression, but decent popcorn fodder nevertheless.

You meet the girl of your dreams, and with the feeling being mutual, decide to fast track the romance into marriage. It's one of the big decisions in life, and so you engage some help from your pals, who happen to be some of the most disorganized bunch ever, unintentionally lining up what would be one of life's most memorable events with a series of mishaps and accidents that are just waiting to happen, from run ins with drug dealers, abuse of drugs and drink, and an animal featured somewhere as well. No this is not The Hangover films, although at first glance A Few Best Men may seem to tread on similar territory.

Unlike the American films that focus on extreme shenanigans, A Few Best Men may deal with similar wedding blues in comedic fashion, but was rather a bit more restrained in its grossness, although toilet humour is something staple that is never too far away and utilized when there's a need to for maximum effect. This Australian production follows a more British route with witty repartee, and quirky, zany characters peppering the landscape, with probably the only sane people in the entire film being the groom David (Xavier Samuel) and his bride Mia (Laura Brent).

The titular characters refer to David's best mates Tom (Kris Marshall) who's usually the catalyst of problems with his indifferent attitude, Graham (Kevin Bishop) the somewhat dim witted follower, and Luke (Tim Draxi) who still can't get over the break up with his ex. Together they lend support to David as his best men for his wedding, making that round the world trip from England to Australia. Mia on the other hand comes from a political family, with a senator for a dad in Jim (Jonathan Biggins) whose more than proud to turn his daughter's wedding into political gain, wife Barbara (Olivia Newton-John, probably the largest name in this ensemble), and sister Daphne (Rebel Wilson last seen in What To Expect When You're Expecting). With worlds so different colliding together, sparks fly in similar, slowly but surely fashion to Meet the Fockers, with a scene being somewhat of a lift off The Hangover when the stag's night out turned into one big blur.

A Few Best Men sees the long awaited return by director Stephan Elliott, who did the acclaimed Priscilla Queen of the Desert. And I have to admit unabashedly that I'm somewhat of a fan of writer Dean Craig's work, after what he did with Death at a Funeral, dealing with something similar with family and friends' shenanigans standing out during life's ceremonies, and in a way this film seemed like a spiritual companion to his earlier work for the way it encompassed rip tickling moments over one of life's major rituals. It's basically Murphy's Law put on display here, with everything that can go wrong actually do go wrong, with a couple of surprise (some may argue convenient) twists thrown in for good measure.

The soundtrack is also noteworthy in the film, consisting of mostly evergreens and oldies from the 60s and 70s, and having Olivia Newton-John lend her vocals as well. In fact, her character becomes what would be the live wire of the film as it wore on, together with Kris Marshall and Kevin Bishop drawing the loudest of laughs thanks to their subplot involving their quest for weed from which everything got intricately tied to no thanks to their being stuck with contraband drugs, and being quite inept in helping the groom settle and solve the mess they got everyone into.

If one is game for ensemble films and buddy type ones where the inevitably lessons extracted will be themes on brotherhood, friendship and family, with lots of laughs thrown in from good measure, then A Few Best Men would be your choice this week during the summer season breather in between blockbusters hitting the cinemas. Highly recommended!

Funny isn't it how one film can illicit such varied responses from different people? But of course those who dislike it most yell the loudest - yes I'm looking at you nicakpopolis and co - I'm sorry that you're so smart and the rest of the audience who were laughing are such idiots. Truly. Just because you didn't like a movie, it doesn't make the rest of us fools. Ego out of control. And if you didn't even watch the whole thing (chrisliz) then you probably shouldn't review it. And if you didn't like the trailer why would you see it anyway!? Aren't people funny? Anyway I reckon this movie is OK. It doesn't pretend to be anything it isn't. If you're after a bit of laugh out loud escapism this is for you (and if it isn't...stay at home or see something else and save us all from having to read your bile ridden comments). Cheers mark