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SUBURBAN MAYHEM
**** out of *****
Reviewed by Jim Stanton Screening in the 2007 World Cinema Showcase
Back to KP's WSC Coverage
 Genres
Crime
Drama
2006
Directed by
Paul Goldman
Written by
Alice Bell
Cast
Emily Barclay ... Katrina
Michael Dorman ... Rusty
Robert Morgan ... John
Anthony Hayes ... Kenny
Laurence Breuls ... Danny
Steve Bastoni ... Robert Andretti
Mia Wasikowska ... Lilya
Geneviève Lemon ... Dianne
Madeleine Jaine ... Janelle
Susan Prior ... Christine It takes talent to be a real bitch. Trust me I know. The kind of evil she-devil that makes ordinary folks down the street shudder into the shelter of their velour lounge suites, and twitch the curtains as she goes by, that takes work. A neighbor complains, threaten their life. Some one narks on you, kill their dog. Simple. Paul Goldman’s film Suburban Mayhem sells our anti-heroine Katrina to us in a whole convincing way, and its not often that a character so deeply wrong can hold such appeal.  Emily Barkley’s portrayal of rampaging Katrina is snake-like is both in its appetite to devour and also ability to mesmerize the hapless males of her community in quick succession. Maiden aunts, wives and daughters look on in open disapproval but Katrina is untouchable, her eyeliner remains as black as ever, her power unchecked as her brother kills, her baby cries, her boyfriend dithers and the father screams he is murdered from the next room. Alice Bells screen play captures the realism of a very possible story, true to life, earthy dialogue, candid tell-all style giving breath and life to characters that could easily become lampooned. I found myself unconsciously applying each face to members of my own small community growing up. Curious neighbors, widowers, young open eyed girls, rebels and the ever present stupid kid are the kind of universal personalities that fix things in place. Their commonality in this film binds them firmly in place under the sun saturated cul-de-sacs of Golden Grove and makes the devastating rampage of Katrina all the more grating to the senses. The film opens to the smirk, and giggle of our Katrina, 19 year old single mum at the funeral of her father. She’s a girl who gets what she wants using the means that she has; herself. Body and mind is dedicated to her single minded drive of doing what ever the hell she wants and freeing her deeply beloved brother from prison. I could only watch in horrified fascination as Barkley’s Katrina hurtles from hooning, burnout style through suburbia, fag in hand, drunk with baby in tow, to scrubbed up playing dress up as the wronged other woman in an attempt to convince a wife of a cheating husband (Hilariously she attempts to make her daughter look more like the ‘bloke’ in question by mascaraing her hair) I know, I know, all this says is Katrina, Katrina, Katrina but she one of the more vivid and horrific car crashes of a human being I have seen on film for a long time. Fine performances are given by both Michael Dorman as Rusty and Robert Morgan as John Skinner, Katrina’s long suffering father; two men equally protective and enamored with Cyclone Katrina in their own ways, defined personalities that have no hold or defence against the virgin/whore. Writer Alice Bell was advised when creating Katrina to add to her back story, put a little dark material in about a past incident that would drive an ordinary girl to the lengths that she goes to chew up and spit out all she surveys. But Bell resisted and to her credit, it works. Katrina offers no excuses so why should we seek them. Goldman’s style has the details down, giving the setting real grounding firmly between the facsimile houses of suburbia, utes and a sunburnt lawn, bourbon and boredom, changing nappies and leatherette clad thighs of a teenage harpy. Auckland screenings at the Academy Cinema
Fri 23 Mar 2007 - 8:45 pm
Wellington screenings at the Paramount Theatre
Fri 30 Mar 2007 - 2:00 pm
Mon 2 Apr 2007 - 8:30 pm
Tue 3 Apr 2007 - 4:00 pm
Christchurch screenings at Rialto Cinemas
Thu 12 Apr 2007 - 6:15 pm
Fri 13 Apr 2007 - 8:30 pm
Dunedin screenings at the Regent Theatre
Fri 20 Apr 2007 - 6:15 pm
Sun 22 Apr 2007 - 8:00 pm
Tue 24 Apr 2007 - 1:45 pm |
