Review: Kenny


Tale of a likeable working class plumber (Shane Jacobson, in a star-making turn), his love of his much maligned job (we not only see him ‘on the job’ but attending a toiletry expo of some kind), but also the love he has for his son (he’s a single father). Hell, he even falls in love with a nice air hostess (Eve von Bibra, formerly of the Aussie girl group The Chantoozies, though I didn’t recognise her at first) when he takes his first-ever flight on a plane for a corporate gig. But that’s about it for plot, I’m afraid.


2006 Aussie fave of both audiences, and rather astonishingly, critics. These are the same critics that had previously bemoaned the state of our film industry that featured ambitious but flawed films by the bucket-load and lame ‘ocker’ comedies (Including such laugh-free flicks as “A Man’s Gotta Do”, “The Honourable Wally Norman”, “You and Your Stupid Mate” and countless others). Now that our industry is back to a reasonable state (due mostly to an embrace of horror/genre flicks and high-brow endeavours that contain fewer flaws than ones made say around the time “Somersault” ridiculously won practically every AFI award), it seems it’s OK to let some of these lame Aussie comedies get a passing grade, so long as their heart is in the right place.


Well, not with me. “Crocodile Dundee”, sure. “The Castle”, absolutely. But they were good films, the latter especially. This Clayton Jacobson (it’s seemingly a family affair, with several generations of Jacobson’s in front of and behind the camera) mockumentary-style film features a likeable lead character (Shane Jacobson really does make him endearing, especially in one scene where he defends his profession and his relationship with his son to an angry old busy-body), but absolutely nothing new, and certainly very little to laugh at (a frightening near-accident at a race-track is about the only laugh I had).


The romantic subplot is somewhat sweet but not very well-developed. I just can’t understand what all the fuss is about, folks. It’s a one-joke idea, and a surprisingly low-key treatment of said joke, with less ‘toilet humour’ than one might expect. Screenplay by both of the Jacobson brothers.


Kenny deserved a better vehicle, if you ask me. He’s a top bloke, even if his movie is a chore. But everyone else loved it, so maybe it’s just me.


Rating: C

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