Hell Has Harbour Views (2005) (TV)

Director:

Peter Duncan

Writers:

Richard Beasley (novel)
Peter Duncan (written by)

Release Date:

30 January 2005 (Australia)

Genre:

Drama | Comedy

Tagline:

A modern tale of love and litigation.

Plot:

A man re-discovers his conscience in the most unlikely of places - working for a prestigious law firm. |

Plot Keywords:

Beautiful Woman | Based On Novel

Awards:

5 nominations

Cast

Matt Day	...	Hugh Walker
Lisa McCune	...	Caroline Ashton
Marta Dusseldorp	...	Helen
Tony Llewellyn-Jones	...	John Diplock
Peter O'Brien	...	Tim Sullivan
Steve Bisley	...	Bruce Kent
Kris McQuade	...	Pam
Frank Whitten	...	Giles Taffy QC
Freya Stafford	...	Jill Bishop
Abigail Bianca	...	Sarah
David Field	...	Greg Hogan
Roy Billing	...	Kevin Fields
Tiriel Mora	...	Rob Carney
Simon Chilvers	...	George Hancock
Tony Barry	...	Frank Flannery

Runtime:

Finland:105 min (2 parts)

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Australia:MA (DVD rating) | Australia:M (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Company:

Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)

Do lawyers REALLY only think of sex, booze, sex, long lunches, sex, and cheating?

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

According to this very funny and very black comedy, that is indeed all that they do. With a cast containing more stars than Sagittarius, this movie seemed destined to succeed, and indeed it does.

I see that sometimes people agonizes over the question "why is a movie funny?" (or not funny). Well, I don't know the answer either, but one thing that seems to contribute here, is that every one of the stellar cast members seems to be enjoying him or herself here. Steve Bisley in particular is the most animated I have ever seen him to be.

Lisa McCune is indeed a very beautiful woman, and this is the first I have seen of her that allows that to come through. Coles commercials and policewoman's uniforms have truly done nothing for her. Freya Stafford always looks great, but she seems to have been given (or chosen!) more opportunities to show herself off.

The storyline is black, black, black. Our hero works in a very high powered law firm, beset by both internal and external problems. All of the clichés about lawyers come into play. He is buffeted by forces way outside his control, and tries to do the "right thing". Often his choices are only between overwhelming evils. It is surely not a spoiler to say that ultimately he finds a truly creative way to succeed.

The takes where he talks directly to the camera, a la Bruce Willis in "Moonlighting", are very well done, and not overdone. And the opulent settings in downtown Sydney add much to the mood of the movie.

The ending left little room for a sequel or a series. Nevertheless, I hope and pray that there will be one.

If you are a lawyer, I suspect that you won't find this too funny, and if you are forced to sit through this, you may well cringe the entire movie. If you are anyone else, I suspect that you, like me, will find this movie to be ROFL funny.