Dessicated Coconut

Movies 6

Richard Shorkinghorn

A Little Bit Of Soul (1998). Dir. Peter Duncan. With Geoffrey Rush, Frances O'Connor, Heather Mitchell.

Plot Synopsis: Jet-black comedy. Two scientists compete for funding from a wealthy heiress and her devil-worshipping husband, who happens to be the Australian Minister of Finance. Richard Shorkinghorn, a scientist on the brink of discovering the key to the aging process, is dismayed to find he is spending the weekend at their country estate with his ex-lab partner and ex-girlfriend, who is now his rival for the grant money. Even worse, both their hosts seem a little....off.

Character: Richard Shorkinghorn

Notes: True, he sports a boring brown haircut, thick glasses, and a nerdy laugh; but Richard is one of David's sweetest, most lovable and endearing characters. Cooing over chickens, eating onion rings off his fingers, making horrible faces while playing "Charades", showering, tied up and tickled, snorting to self over Stephen Hawking's "Brief History of Time".....it's all good.  A fabulous soundtrack by Louis Jordan and Tom Waits adds to the fun.

 

Drool Factor: 

 

Screentime: 

 

Nerdometer: 

 

Content:     Shower scene, barfing, live chickens, comic dialogue, glasses, attempted seductions

Memorable Quotes: "Look.....I just came in here for a pee."

 

Grace: The lunch guests will be here in an hour.
Richard: (very, very hung over) Oh. Greeaat.

Kate:   Just be yourself.
Richard: But...myself isn't good enough!

 

Kate: (sniffing) What's that cologne you're wearing?

Richard:  Ralph...Klein's...eau de....something.

 

Davidity:  A-

 

Availability:  DVD - all regions

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Schreber's Assistant

Brett Sprague

The Boys (1998). Dir. Rowan Woods. With Toni Collette, John Polson, Anthony Hayes.

Plot Synopsis:  An intense and disturbing character study of a working-class family, "The Boys" chronicles the events leading up to a horrible (but unseen) crime. Brett Sprague (David Wenham) returns home to his family after a year in prison for an assault on a liquor-store owner, angry that no one wrote or visited him. He finds that life has changed:  his mother has taken up with an Aborigine drifter, his brother Glenn has moved out with his girlfriend, his youngest brother Stevie's pregnant girlfriend is now living with them, and his stash of drugs is missing.  Intent on restoring order and control over his family, Brett's anger and suspicion explode in a terrifying way.

Character: Brett Sprague

Notes: David successfully reprised his menacing stage role for this film, earning an AFI 'Best Actor' nominaton. As Brett Sprague, he was so terrifying on the set that Rowan Woods, the director, was afraid to enter his dressing room.

 

On first viewing, this film can be disorienting.  The narrative intersperses present-day action (leading up to the crime) with a series of flash-forwards (the aftermath of the crime).  There is an excellent, detailed plot analysis at this website which explains the timeline  (warning: spoilers).  Also check out the press kit for "The Boys", found by wenhamfan at wenham-wonderland.net (warning: spoilers).

 

This movie should not be confused with the 1997 Canadian hockey comedy "The Boys".

Drool Factor: 

 

Screentime: 

 

Nerdometer: 

 

Content:     Violent confrontations, cursing, closeups of cigarettes and acid tabs

Memorable Quotes:  "Hang on a tick..."

 

Davidity:  C+  (due to Brett's chilling menace)

 

Availability:  DVD - Region 4 only.  VHS - PAL/NTSC (the NTSC version is rare).

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Ian

Simone de Beauvoir's Babies (1997). TV series. Dir. Kate Woods. With Sally Cooper, Anne Looby, Leverne McDonnell.

Plot Synopsis: A show focusing on the dilemmas of thirtysomething women making knotty choices about careers, romance, children, and marriage.  Karla, Louise, Susan, and Diane meet up at a high-school reunion after 20 years out in the real world.  Three of the women form a pact to strike out on their own, find sperm donors, and become single mothers; the fourth, Diane, ridicules the plan and suggests that babies are not the only path to fulfillment for women.  Along the way, the friends explore heartache, ancient hurts, new wonders, and self-discovery.

Character: Ian

Notes:  David, playing a sweet, laid-back assistant to one of the female characters, helps her get pregnant.  He won an AFI award ("Best Actor in a Leading Role - Television or Drama") for his performance as Ian.  Patience is an asset when viewing this four-part series - David hardly appears in the first two episodes - but faith is amply rewarded with some very, very funny sequences involving a turkey baster and a pair of skis.  (Not at the same time, we hasten to add.)

Drool Factor:  

 

Screentime: 

 

Nerdometer: 

 

Content:      Bathtub scene, comic lines, shirtlessness, nookie

Memorable Quotes: 

 

Davidity:  C+.  C due to lack of screentime, but a + for the quality of the scenes.

 

Availability:  Region 4 only.

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Dr. Ghrobak

Bank Teller

Doug

Cosi (1996). Dir. Mark Joffe. With Ben Mendelsohn, Barry Otto, Toni Collette.

Plot Synopsis: A group of inmates at a local asylum attempt to put on a production of "Cosi". Oddball, but cute. Reminiscent of "Waiting for Guffman".

Character: Doug the Pyromaniac

Notes:  Pigs and non-stop cussing. Watch the Shang A Doo Dee rap and the Cat Burning Monologue here.

Drool Factor: 

Screentime:    The bad news: Doug gets kicked off the production almost immediately for burning down the playhouse, and sent back to the closed ward. The good news: he's very good at breaking out.

 

Nerdometer: 

 

Content:     Funny lines, pigs, smoking, pottymouth, antisocial behavior

Memorable Quotes:  "Little Richard wrote an opera? Tutti Frutti, by Little Richard?"

 

"I'll give you some friendly advice, Lewis.  Don't ever, ever get a cat."

 

"Okay okay okay!  Too long have white motherfuckers ruled this country!  Now it's time for our people to take control!"

 

"Shang-a-doo-dee, my mate's a ped-o-phile!"

 

Davidity:  C+

 

Availability:  DVD - all regions

 

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