ANY QUESTIONS FOR BEN?

Any Questions For Ben tanked at the box office. I just watched it and totally enjoyed it. The Working Dog mob rarely disappoint and I think it's to their credit that they haven't recycled a formula yet. From A River Somewhere to The Castle... Funky Squad to The Dish... (amongst others) they can't be accused of milking the cash cow. When they pulled the pin on their awesome tv series The Panel, they did so while it was still flying. They knew to quit while they were ahead... and so their 3 films to date have all been worlds apart. The first thing that stood out was the way Melbourne is represented. The cinematography is love letter to our home town and the city has never looked so amazing. And of course there's the soundtrack. As with The Dish, they have filled the movie with perfectly chosen tunes and they let the music tell much of the story. And finally there's the cast and their performances. Very nicely done on all accounts. The script might not be highly original but the players give it authenticity and I suspect they were given the freedom to ad-lib. It all works for me. There's something about Australian rom-coms. We do it so well and watching Any Questions For Ben? got me reflecting on other ones we've produced over the years. The Big Steal, I Love You Too, Summer Coda, Strictly Ballroom (etc)... we have a unique way of telling these stories. It's also great to see Rachel Taylor maintaining an Australian career alongside her Hollywood one. Kudos to her!

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