A FEW BEST MEN

No. The problem, as with so many Australian films, lies in the script. But here’s the twist: it’s not an Aussie writer, but an Englishman. Not just any Englishman, but Dean Craig, the scribe behind indy hit ‘Death At A Funeral,’ that even had a U.S. remake in 2010.

The script was originally penned pre-'Hangover,' and as a result, had to receive some major surgery upon the release of the Las Vegas caper. Among other things, the setting was switched from England to Australia once Elliott came on board, leading the director to re-write chunks of the script in order to “Australianise” it. So, England became Australia, the goat became a sheep, and the dialogue became less poncey.

All of these desperate changes lends itself to some clunky and - sad to say - “Australian acting”. But not all hope is lost. Yes, there are some laughs and a lot of them are even deliberate, led by the film's strong English players. The whole cast gives it their all, never shying away from the embarrassing, especially ONJ.

It’s great to finally see a semi-decent Australian comedy hit the big screen. While it may not be the stuff of legends and go down in history along side names such as ‘Muriel’s Wedding’ and ‘Priscilla’, it’s entertaining enough and almost worth the $17.50 to see Olivia in a role that’s a far cry for Sandy in ‘Grease’, even after the makeover.