TOP END WEDDING

2019 | DIR: WAYNE BLAIR | STARRING MIRANDA TAPSELL, GWELYM LEE,  KERRY FOX, URSULA YOVICH | REVIEW BY GLENN COCHRANE.

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As an unabashed fan of Australian cinema, it is with confidence that I can say that our local industry struggles when it comes to comedy. We do have our occasional bullseyes and every once in a while we strike gold with international audiences, but for every hit there are a dozen misses and those that fail tend to be those that celebrate ockerisms. Whereas, on the other hand, those that succeed are those that celebrate our sense of belonging. Crocodile Dundee, The Castle, Muriel’s Wedding and Kenny are glowing examples of films that are uniquely Aussie with a strong sense of home and self-worth at the core. Amongst the hijinks and frivolity of their stories are sincere, likeable and unapologetic characters with whom the audience can relate.

The other key ingredient for most Australian films to succeed outside of our shores is international talent. It’s a golden rule that applies to all genres and we’ve seen countless foreign stars light up our screens; Josh Lucas in Red Dog, Terrance Stamp in Priscilla, John Goodman in Dirty Deeds and Patrick Warburton in The Dish, to name but a few. The list is endless and Aussies share a common pride when we see big-wigs from around the world coming all the way Down Under to help tell our stories. The latest local film to grace our screens with a foreign star is Top End Wedding, a romantic comedy directed by Wayne Blair (The Sapphires), starring co-writer Miranda Tapsell (Love Child). The added ingredient in this instance is British actor Gwilym Lee, who recently starred as Brian May in the Oscar-winning film Bohemian Rhapsody.

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