I think this is a great New Zealand offering. It's a small slice of suburban life which seems perfectly at ease on the big screen.
Slick film making, a tight script, great acting, and a gripping story means you'll laugh and cry as you go on a journey that is set in suburban Howick.
It's a story about ordinary lives that become extraordinary as we get caught up in their drama. A father learns a hard lesson when his youngest son is hurt in a go-karting accident and the eldest son Marc deals with some serious guilt because he believes he's responsible for the accident.
It's a classic case of a dad wanting success for his sons but for Gazza it comes at a cost. I'm not going to spoil the story and tell you too much but I am going to recommend that you get along and see it for yourselves.
Robyn Malcolm (Outrageous Fortune) and Williams McInnes (Look Both Ways)are perfectly cast. The striking Josh McKenzie who plays eldest son Marc has potential Hollywood heartthrob written all over him. Auckland Art Director Phil Ivey (In My Father's Den, Lord of the Rings)has caught the nuances of the suburban setting aptly and the race-track scenes make for seat-of-your-pants action. One scene that stands out in my mind is when Marc takes his go-kart out onto the mean streets of Howick by night. It reminded me of hooning in Mum's car (something Howickites will relate to) only much louder and faster.
If you like stories about real characters reacting to plausible life drama you'll enjoy this film. Brendan has an immediate and captivating film-making style. This may be a result of his years working as a commercial director in New York.
I hope he gets to make a lot more films about stories like this. They're real and they're about people like us. Served up with that Donovan vision makes for interesting and entertaining cinema.
Slick film making, a tight script, great acting, and a gripping story means you'll laugh and cry as you go on a journey that is set in suburban Howick.
It's a story about ordinary lives that become extraordinary as we get caught up in their drama. A father learns a hard lesson when his youngest son is hurt in a go-karting accident and the eldest son Marc deals with some serious guilt because he believes he's responsible for the accident.
It's a classic case of a dad wanting success for his sons but for Gazza it comes at a cost. I'm not going to spoil the story and tell you too much but I am going to recommend that you get along and see it for yourselves.
Robyn Malcolm (Outrageous Fortune) and Williams McInnes (Look Both Ways)are perfectly cast. The striking Josh McKenzie who plays eldest son Marc has potential Hollywood heartthrob written all over him. Auckland Art Director Phil Ivey (In My Father's Den, Lord of the Rings)has caught the nuances of the suburban setting aptly and the race-track scenes make for seat-of-your-pants action. One scene that stands out in my mind is when Marc takes his go-kart out onto the mean streets of Howick by night. It reminded me of hooning in Mum's car (something Howickites will relate to) only much louder and faster.
If you like stories about real characters reacting to plausible life drama you'll enjoy this film. Brendan has an immediate and captivating film-making style. This may be a result of his years working as a commercial director in New York.
I hope he gets to make a lot more films about stories like this. They're real and they're about people like us. Served up with that Donovan vision makes for interesting and entertaining cinema.