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30 reviews in total

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13 out of 15 people found the following review useful:
An underappreciated gem, 7 July 1999
Author: Jim Corrigan from Newton, MA

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

The Coca-Cola Kid is sort of an Australian version of Local Hero, with the crucial difference that it's much darker.

In short, it is about Coca-Cola being brought to the one place on earth where the locals don't already drink it, but it turns out there's a good reason why they don't drink it.

This movie should have put Eric Roberts on the map more than it did. It certainly put Greta Scacchi on the map. She plays the daughter of the local softdrink seller, and she's very good, as is Roberts. The scene where he holds a glass of Coke aloft while describing it in near-poetic terms is great satire.

For hormonal appeal, the scene where they sleep together on a bed of white feathers is as erotic as anything I've ever seen. At the end, when she smiles at him, suggesting a reprise of that scene, the effect is devastating.

This movie is full of good scenes. My personal favorite is the "Waltzing Matilda" scene, which I'd rather not give away.

I was surprised at the negative tone of the other comments. This movie deserves a look, so check it out.

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13 out of 16 people found the following review useful:
About Two-Thirds of a Really Fine Movie and Then an Awful Mess of a Last Act, 23 February 2001
Author: Daniel J. Fienberg (d_fienberg) from Los Angeles, CA

The opening titles for The Coca-Cola Kid make it clear that the film is in no way sponsored by Coca-Cola or the Coca-Cola bottling company. Obviously the company felt comfortable enough with the final product to let the film use their name, but it's hardly a glowing picture of the soft drink giant. In The Coca-Cola Kid, Coca-Cola is the face of American Imperialism. When company trouble shooter Becker (Eric Roberts) declares, "The world will not be truly free until Coke is available everywhere," he's speaking without irony. This film, then, is about Becker's attempts to help Coca-Cola colonize Australia, but what starts off as a film of comic promise and originality becomes bogged down in convention and cliché to the point that it's difficult by the final reel to remember what was so appealing at the beginning.

The Coca-Cola Kid fits nicely in the genre of American Corporate Fish Out Of Water tales. If you've seen the delightful Local Hero, for example, you'll know that no matter what kind of tough American goes off to the rural wasteland, he'll change, enlightened by the small town quirks and wisdom he was meant to subvert. That's not really giving anything away in this film, because the last act doesn't play out as you expect. In fact, it hardly plays out at all.

Becker arrives in Australia to help boost lagging sales. It turns out that there's a whole region of the country where no Coke is sold at all. Becker, a former marine with the proverbial "unorthodox way of doing business," discovers that that region is ruled over by T. George McDowell (Bill Kerr) a gruff man of homespun wisdom, but more importantly, homemade soft drinks, made from real fruit. Even though their first encounter is rough, Becker is determined to fight off the advances of his secretary-with-a-secret (Greta Scacchi) and the hotel waiter who mistakes him for an arms dealer to do the job he was sent to do.

Directed by Dusan Makavejev, The Coca-Cola Kid develops a wonderful momentum early on. In fact, the first hour of the film is an absolute gem. Eric Roberts's performance to that point is perfect. His presentation to the bemused Coke officials is comic gold, as he waxes poetic about the fizzy beverage, even holding it up to the light bathing the room in its brown glow. Roberts's early scenes with Scacchi have a nice screwball touch and his interactions with Scacchi's moppet daughter provide a nice depth for the character, hinting at something beyond his intensity. There's a nifty sequence where Becker enlists a studio band to try to come up with the "sound of Australia" where they go through several absurd suggestions before coming up with a truly catchy jingle.

I'm not sure how far it is into the movie, but for me things begin to go south immediately after that recording session. For reasons completely unclear to me, the secretary has Becker invited to a party to catch him in an awkward position. This involves completely random intimations of homosexuality and ends of feeling both forced and pointless. The scene is so clumsy that it leaves a bad taste that begins to spread.

It rapidly becomes clear that The Coca-Cola Kid isn't going to omit a single convention of Australian culture. You want an old bushman with a diggerydoo (inevitably misspelled, but my dictionary is letting me down)? You've got it. An adorable wounded Kangaroo? Bingo! And a slightly inbred man singing a rousing chorus of "Walzing Matilda?" Yup-Yup. In fact, the vision of Australia put forth by the film is so cookie-cutter that it's hard to feel bad about the culture being overrun by American interests. You support Coke because you figure they're at least putting forth a good product.

Eric Roberts's performance finally ends up being a little infuriating because he's not given any opportunity or reason to be anything other than amusingly scary. The film falls apart at just the point you wish Roberts would go through the obligatory character alteration, but there's just no chance. He's stranded. Ditto Scacchi. She adorable and makes the sexiest Santa in the history of cinema, but her character's payoff is weak. Bill Kerr is excellent for the most part, but you can't help but feel that his cagey old Outback Vet is a character we've seen a thousand times.

The Coca-Cola Kid's best and most consistent feature is its cinematography by Dean Semler. The Oscar winner (for Dances With Wolves) does what the script and director can't do -- he creates the ironic counterpoint between the Outback, the big city, and Eric Roberts. The film has a dynamic look which, unlike the narrative, doesn't fall apart at the end.

I do feel bad about only giving this movie a 6/10, but I guess I should have just turned it off early. Off to drink a Coke...

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6 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
A true gem hidden in the dirt, 21 December 2002
Author: mkrupnick from Los Angeles

This is that rare find: a truly lovely yet unpretentious film. Never in their careers have Roberts and Scacchi been more genuinely warm and transparently human. Every twitch of the eye and gesture comes across as the real deal. The direction and writing are wonderfully sparse and unaffected, letting the simple story shine through. This is comedy in it's most understated form, and if the viewer is paying attention, he/she can't help but laugh and cry just as we do in life.

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5 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
Ten reasons why this film is memorable *POSSIBLE SPOILERS*, 23 March 2003
Author: richard_wright

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

(1) The song (Don't wanna go where theres no Coca Cola indeed).

(2) Eric Roberts's manic, amusing performance where he acts like a hyperactive child on valium half the time.

(3) "Give me churches..schools..houses."

(4) Kangeroos being rescued from planes on their way to the vet.

(5) The ultra-sexy Greta Scacchi shower scene where nothing is left to the imagination.

(6) The super-sexy Greta Scacchi's seduction of Roberts involving a Santa suit, a shoe that keeps coming off and feathers. Lots and lots of feathers.

(7) The tour of the McDowell factory, the Willy Wonka of the drinks Industry.

(8) Gay parties with Roberts dancing with the most unconvincing drag queen this side of Priscilla.

(9) An impromptu sing-along of that perennial Australian favourite, Waltzing Matilda, with backing vocals provided by a group of dancing Santas.

(10) The ending text, something about the world ending and the US declaring war on China (you what!?)

Apart from those, there are plot holes big enough to drive a double-decker bus through and the whole film undertakes annoying changes in tone from time to time. There is some good stuff here and it certainly earns the tag "original" but I cannot in all good conscience give this heroic faliure a:

5/10

Take care now!!

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6 out of 8 people found the following review useful:
Offbeat And Flawed But Nothing Quite Like It, 9 October 2003

Author: secragt from United States

The Coca-Cola Kid is not a perfect movie but it is guaranteed to elicit a strong response from you, one way or the other. The promising premise of taking a Southwestern Coca Cola marketing guru to the Outback to sell the locals his universally beloved liquid nectar leads to an intriguing and entertaining culture clash. Less successful, but still whimsically charming, is the pairing of Greta Sacchi and Eric Roberts. While Sacchi and Roberts actually do have some chemistry once they get involved, one is still left wondering exactly what Sacchi sees in the rude and self-centered Roberts initially. The movie comes up with an out-of-left-field explanation which is both jarring and silly; it is one of several missteps in the third act. Another unhappy development is the violent response of the local distributor, which abruptly shifts the tone from oddball romantic comedy to dark drama. The movie goes out of its way to be offbeat, inserting non-sequiturs like the nutjob concierge seeking CIA employment and the homoerotic transvestite interlude. The entirely nonsensical epilogue announcement tops off these "quirky for quirky's sake" calculations and leaves the viewer rolling his eyes a bit.

Still, despite the warts above, The Coca-Cola Kid is a unique and mostly entertaining look at American Capitalism morphing into Imperialism overseas.

Roberts is up and down, but ultimately a decent choice as the charismatic and driven capitalist charged with conquering the Aussie Cola industry. Go in realizing this is more a satire than a social commentary and you'll likely come away refreshed, if not entirely quenched. 7.5 / 10

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10 out of 16 people found the following review useful:
Almost Worth Mentioning, 15 February 1999

Author: Shannon Box (sbox@gvtc.com) from Canyon Lake, Texas

This movie really starts strong. We know that Roberts is an Atlanta hotshot sent to Australia to fix Coke's marketing problems. We also know he is an eccentric genius. Roberts' fine acting convinces us of this rather quickly.

Unfortunately, the plot is so flimsy, that whatever fine character development has been achieved, it is negated by voids, inconsistencies, and downright boring film sequences.

Usually, I am a sucker for bold and far out plots. Examples which I am fond of include, "Dark Star," "O.C. & Stiggs," and "Popeye." Coupled with the fact that I must admit that this film was well acted, it surprises even myself that I cannot recommend this film.

The utter breakdown in this movie occurs about midway through the film. All comedy is instantly lost and the film turns dark. Afterwards, the film plods along. The film's attempt to get the comedy rolling again is not successful. More surprises await the viewer and they are darker still.

To be sure, mixing drama with comedy can be a formula for success. However, with this movie, the result is about as successful as "new coke."

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2 out of 2 people found the following review useful:
American Marketing versus Foreign Cultural Values, 8 January 2003
Author: jtmazibrook from San Francisco, California

The film is billed as a comedy and will indeed leave you laughing at many of the situations the central characters get themselves in and out of. The movie should be viewed as a satire of the great American sales and marketing force on the global marketplace.

A hot shot marketing guru from corporate is assigned to help sales down under. He quickly finds a different pace of life and cultural values that he finds hard to adjust to. He continues on "his way" even down to the music for a new series of commercials. He knows "his way" worked well in the U.S. so it should work well anywhere.

Humorous side trips make the journey enjoyable as the guru quickly finds a large area that has no Coca Cola sales. He goes to investigate and finds a local soft drink bottler has the entire area to himself.

The guru uses every gorilla marketing trick he knows to bring the local bottler into the Coke family, but the local bottler resists and even offers Coke a deal. Coke invades the local's territory and the local realizes he cannot win against the Coke attack.

Coke's decisive win costs the company the guru as he finally begins to understand that other things in life, emotions and cultural values, are more important than business wins.

I enjoyed the film and recommend it to you, especially if you want to see a funny version of the 60's novel "The Ugly American."

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3 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
Sneaky like a pigeon drop. (spoilers), 6 September 2005

Author: Pepper Anne from Orlando, Florida

I started watching The Coca-Cola Kid with the assumption that it would be like other Australian comedies I have seen in which a gung-ho businessman of some sort wants to change a rather dogmatic, traditional industrialist like 'Spotswood' or, in reference to homeowners, 'The Castle.'

And true, that is the initial plot in 'The Coca-Cola Kid.' Eric Roberts plays an efficient Southern businessman who plays a key role for the Australian marketing department for the Australian headquarters for the Coca-Cola Company. While trying to assess the markets and potential successful marketing ploys, he learns that there is a large portion of a rural section of Australia that has no Coca-Cola distribution whatsoever and he wants to know why.

Enter lovable and genuine old-timer, T. George McDowell, who has his own successful and self-sufficient coke company which monopolizes the area. It is the last of its kind and Becker, who cannot simply fathom any section of the world that has no option of Coca-Cola beverages (he even goes so far to say that freedom cannot be established without global presence of Coca-Cola) intends to compete with McDowell. But, McDowell, used to the frequent visits from Coca-Cola marketing executives who try to make deals (and offer to buy him out?), figures that Becker is another lightweight (at least, initially) and is not ready to give in without a fight. This is essentially the crux of the story, the global company versus the independent.

But, the movie takes both an odd and confusing turn at about the time that Becker tries to rain on Mr. McDowell's parade when he shows up at the Rotary Dance with Santa's offering the audience free samples of Coca-Cola. Because, this is about the same time that the story shifts it focus from the main plot to the subplot involving Becker and his eccentric former secretary (played by Gretta Scacchi). Although, I can understand that this is no less essential to the story because Becker, in his involvement with the secretary, is finally pulled from his impersonal role as marketing executive and forced to eventually take on a more humanistic role. But getting there was so weird, and this is especially evident from the sequences where Becker gets drunk and shows up at the drag queen club. And, it is probably Becker's exceedingly weird emptiness that creates such an odd atmosphere and, at least for me, some of the confusion. I don't know if this is how we are supposed to view Becker, or if Eric Robert's strange performance just leads to this.

Nonetheless, after slagging through this rather strange and abrupt shift in mood and, eventually, focus, the rest of the film pulls through rather nicely with a somewhat humorous (especially the events involving the hotel bellhop who is convinced that Becker is in the CIA) and ultimately sad ending that makes Becker rethink his situation. The filmmakers offer both a mix of the happy ending and not-so-happy ending (you have to watch it to see what I mean).

A pleasant, but unusual Aussie comedy/drama that may be worth your time if you can find it. Just don't go into it with the expectations that it is yet another steadily simple narrative or a typical feel-good Australian comedy.

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
A ton of fun, 20 March 2011

Author: zetes from Saint Paul, MN

The director of WR: Mysteries of the Organism and Sweet Movie made this Australian-based film starring Eric Roberts as a goofy Coca-Cola marketing man. He's trying to get larger market saturation in Australia, especially a certain area where another soft drink, made by Bill Kerr, is the only one available. This film is downright weird, although, as it moves on, it becomes more formulaic. But the weirdness dominates the film, and, damn, is it amusing. Sure, it's not entirely coherent, but it's pretty hilarious. This might be Eric Roberts' finest role. He's just awesome in it, too. Kerr is also wonderful. The highlight of the film, though, is probably Greta Scacchi, who is both funny and gorgeous as the crazy chick trying to win Roberts' affection.

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
I liked it!, 9 May 1999
Author: Bruce Mardle (bruce@algol.demon.co.uk) from England

Lots of local (Australian) colour and fun being made of corporate America. This is what we like. :-)

It's about 10 years since I last saw the film and I still sometimes finding myself humming the song, "choke back the tears when there's no Coca-Cola".

Not a great film, but another welcome Aussie comedy.

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