mattbrentford Reviews

God's Pocket (2014)

A feeling of "almost there" ... but somewhat incomplete

[5/10 · 16 December 2014]

No doubt this piece will split viewers between varying levels of enjoyment and complete apathy.

Character development varies as much as viewer responses to this piece. The storyline is of the period and believable. The action, at times, is authentic and flows well. At other points some viewers will be left thinking "why?" as the scene unfolds. Simply put, as a whole, God's Pocket comes across as an incomplete project.

The performances of some cast members vary from excellent to mundane and the ultimate sin - "phoned in".

I've never read the source material so cannot comment on its transmission to film. I'm left wondering what impact Philip Seymour Hoffman's state of mind, at the time of production, was reflected in the finished product.

Some would say that God's Pocket is a scattered effort. That is not an entirely unfair point of view in this case.

Jack Irish: Dead Point (2014 TV Movie)

Real Melbourne Grit

[8/10 · 11 December 2014]

I was disappointed with the content of some reviews prior to watching this piece. Subsequent to having viewed Jack Irish : Dead Point I have found certain comments to be racially and possibly homophobically insensitive, if not outright offensive. I'm surprised such comments remain on this site.

If you do not believe the plot lines and find problems with the language of this film its probably your problem rather than the film makers. Are all films supposed to be filled with someone's idealised, politically correct, mid Atlantic accented digitally enhanced fantasy? If you're that sort of individual look elsewhere. You'll probably be outraged by Dead Point.

If on the other hand you like authentic localised language, a taste of an Australia that's fast fading, a bit of grime and the old streets of Melbourne then you're certain to thoroughly enjoy Jack Irish.

I lived in Melbourne for decades and met most of the characters depicted in this film at one time or another. They are genuine and accurate representations. Some scenes and areas of the plot can appear to be somewhat simplistic but the truth is real life often plays out that way. Some of the language used may also seem to be "of another era" but so are most of the better characters in this film.

If anything the plot and characters are a little bit dated in a modern setting. It's quite nostalgic in approach. Dead Point certainly honours a long and successful history of high quality, real life TV drama from the ABC.

I bet some reviewers didn't like Malcolm ( 1986 ) or Underbelly either.