Kenny (2006)

From the biggest festival to the smallest church social, Kenny Smyth delivers porta-loos to them all. Ignored and unappreciated, he is one of the cogs in society's machinery; a knight in ... See full summary »

Director:

Clayton Jacobson

Writers:

Clayton Jacobson, Shane Jacobson

Stars:

Shane Jacobson, Travis Golland, Chris Davis

6 wins & 10 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Shane Jacobson	...	Kenny Smyth
Travis Golland	...	Pumper 1
Chris Davis	...	Pat
Alf Scerri	...	Alf
Hayley Preusker	...	Hayley
Saxon Fuller	...	Pumper 2
Thomas Uerata	...	Pumper 3
Kevin 'The Captain' Roy Ogston	...	Pumper 4
Glenn Preusker	...	Glenn
Kevin Roy	...	Pumper 5
Craig Carter	...	Radio DJ (voice)
Pete Smith	...	Radio DJ (voice) (as Peter Smith)
Adrian Atkinson	...	Air Show Manager
Mark Robertson	...	Robbo
Kevin 'Matey' Lee Ogston	...	Pumper 6

Storyline

From the biggest festival to the smallest church social, Kenny Smyth delivers porta-loos to them all. Ignored and unappreciated, he is one of the cogs in society's machinery; a knight in shining overalls taking care of business with his faithful 'Splashdown' crew. Follow Kenny as he tackles every septic challenge that comes his way, culminating in a pilgrimage to that Mecca of waste management, the International Pumper and Cleaner Expo in Nashville Tennessee - or as Kenny affectionately calls it, "Poo HQ". With fly-on-the-wall honesty and wit, 'KENNY' lifts the lid on one of Australia's roughest diamonds as he juggles family tensions, fatherhood and sewage with charm, humour and unflinching dignity. "It takes a certain kind of person to do what I do... No-one's ever impressed; no-one's ever fascinated... If you're a fireman, all the kids will want to jump on the back of the truck and follow you to a fire. There's going to be no kids willing to do that with me. So, I don't do it to ...

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Plot Keywords:

australia | fire | cleaner | nashville tennessee | one word title | 

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Taglines:

A knight in shining overalls

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for crude content, language and partial nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 July 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Кенни

Filming Locations:

Calder Park, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$276,742 (Australia) (18 August 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Thunderbox Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The world premiere of Kenny was in the town of Poowong, Southern Victoria, Australia.

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Goofs

Kenny and son are traveling to the Ocean Grove caravan park where his father lives. On entering the park the camera is focused on the back of Kenny and his son walking toward Kenny's father's cabin, you can see the right-strap of Kenny's overalls 'inside-out' and twisted. As they get closer to the cabin and the front door you see the right strap of Kenny's overalls 'neat' as it should be, however upon leaving his Father's cabin the right strap returns to it's 'inside-out' & twisted position.

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Quotes

Kenny: Busier than a one-armed bricklayer in Baghdad.

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Crazy Credits

At the end of the closing credits the words "The End" are suddenly replaced by "The ARSE End"

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Connections

Spin-off Kenny's World (2008)

User Reviews

A gem in poo corner

The mockumentary format, mostly seen on TV in shows like "People Like Us" (though Christopher Guest in "Spinal Tap" pioneered the form in film), is still novel enough to spring a few surprises. Shane Jacobson as Kenny the Melbourne port-a–loo man is both a surprise and a pleasure. Filmed on a shoestring budget, this film's cheeky manner and adroit editing kept me engaged to the end.

No public event is too big for Kenny and his team as they cater for the lavatorial needs of the public at pop concerts, motor races, sports events and in the grand finale, the Melbourne Cup. In the meantime the good-natured Kenny has to cope with an ex-wife meaner than a junkyard dog, a son he needs to see more of, a difficult and demanding elderly father and less than satisfactory employees. One good piece of fortune does come his way when he scores a trip to Nashville, Tennessee, to a grand poo-collector's convention and meets a nice young lady who's actually interested in him. The plot is a bit on the corny side but that doesn't matter – it's the humour that counts.

As with most mockumentaries the narration plays against what the characters are actually doing, but the dissonance sneaks up on you. Kenny however is not deluded like Ricky Gervais' character "David Brent" in the office – he is a realist. He is also immensely likable. Usually with mockumentaries there is a cringe factor as the hapless protagonist blunders from one faux pas to another (witness David Brent), but that's not the case here. Despite his private life Kenny is immensely capable at work and with him around we know things will turn out all right. Whether it's a ring down the toilet, arson-minded speedway fans, or the victim of a buck's night chained to one of his units, we are confident Kenny will sort it out, the fun is in how.

I hate the expression "gem" but that's what this film is. It's a celebration of the Australian working man, with truth as well as humour. Kenny's final revenge-taking on an arrogant motorist who had boxed his truck in seemed a little out of character, but perhaps justified in the circumstances.

P.S. SNOB ALERT: The upper classes are portrayed as having very little charm indeed.