Katrina is 19 with a neglected toddler, a lipstick-smeared pout and a bad attitude. Her brother's in jail for murder and her dad's fed up with her bludging off him to finance a life that revolves around the beauty salon, bourbon and blow jobs. Soon she, too, is plotting a murder, which may or may not involve her sweet mechanic boyfriend Rusty or her brother's best mate, Kenny, a dropkick with a sadistic streak. In fact, every man she knows becomes a drooling idiot as soon as she unzips her micro-mini denim skirt. It's a juicy role and Emily Barclay attacks it with relish, making this vile steamroller of a sexpot almost likable. But her brash performance is also the movie's fatal flaw: Hurricane Katrina has it all her own way. Everyone else is too stupid or too nice to stand up to her. We've seen this character before, but Dede Truitt in The Opposite Of Sex and Suzanne Stone in To Die For weren't just bad to the bone, they were better written. Still, like that other wild ride through westie wasteland, Idiot Box, this is a bold, blackly funny picture of the Australia most of us live in, full of noisy energy and visual flair, and for that it deserves a big thumbs-up.
36 Reviews
Worth seeing
paulmartin-218 October 2006
In some respects, this was quite an ambitious film it's dark, smart, and edgy a little bit in the vein of Brick (not as polished but a whole lot better). The music and energy are all there, but there seems to be a few flat spots. It may have benefited from some further editing to keep the momentum up, even though it's already just under 90 minutes in length. It seems like the writer and director had some good ideas, that weren't fully realised.
I think many cinema-goers will find this entertaining, and I certainly recommend it over the bulk of Hollywood releases (not that that's saying much), if that's your taste. For me it seemed laboured and contrived. The performances by the actors were generally (but not universally) OK. Emily Barclay's performance was good, but her character failed to engage somewhat like Kath and Kim on speed. It's not that her character was nasty (David Wenham's monumental performance in The Boys was extremely nasty), but more that it seemed manufactured. Her brattishness becomes grating after a while.
The mid-film interviews reminded me of 2:37. They were better done in this film, but still detract somewhat from the continuity of the film.
The script seemed a bit clunky and self-conscious and just didn't quite work for me. I think the director depended too much on the sound-track and style over substance. A strength of the film is that it took some risks, but they weren't fully realised.
I think many cinema-goers will find this entertaining, and I certainly recommend it over the bulk of Hollywood releases (not that that's saying much), if that's your taste. For me it seemed laboured and contrived. The performances by the actors were generally (but not universally) OK. Emily Barclay's performance was good, but her character failed to engage somewhat like Kath and Kim on speed. It's not that her character was nasty (David Wenham's monumental performance in The Boys was extremely nasty), but more that it seemed manufactured. Her brattishness becomes grating after a while.
The mid-film interviews reminded me of 2:37. They were better done in this film, but still detract somewhat from the continuity of the film.
The script seemed a bit clunky and self-conscious and just didn't quite work for me. I think the director depended too much on the sound-track and style over substance. A strength of the film is that it took some risks, but they weren't fully realised.
Impressive portrait of a sociopath in misleadingly promoted film
Bloomer26 October 2006
Suburban Mayhem is a sturdy-ish drama/black comedy-with-very-little-comedy about the exploits of brash young sociopath and single mum Katrina. She lives in the 'burbs and her beloved brother is in jail for decapitating someone(!), yet Kat blames her dad's fumbly efforts during the court proceedings for her brother's incarceration - and also for the swooping of social services upon her kid - and starts scheming to have dad murdered.
This is a very well performed film, especially by Emily Barclay as Kat, and it's craftily directed for the most part, but unfortunately in the end the parts don't add up to create much overall effect. There's little suspense and very few surprises along the way to embellish the fatalistic plot. The device of framing the story with news interviews from after the events sometimes has the effect of delaying our access to the inner lives of the characters, especially Kat. I had the feeling we were about twenty minutes into the film before we started to experience anything from her point of view.
Perhaps what struck me the most is the gulf between the way the film's being promoted - as a lively, maybe even wacky, black comedy - and what it actually is; a black and steady portrait of a sociopath. Certainly there are funny moments, but this is by no means a funny film. Kat is a hugely impressive creation, completely unyielding in her unreasonableness and constantly manipulating those around her through her dumb psychopathy in such a way that the line between apparent calculation and banal self-centredness is hard to distinguish. Any film which builds itself around such a relentlessly appalling character is a brave film, but this just isn't a very entertaining film overall.
Even if you're as open to being bathed in dysfunction as I am, it's hard to stay interested in the character when Suburban Mayhem's trajectory feels so static, seeming to move towards quietness and bleakness at the end rather than any kind of intensity. As for those who demand likable characters, well, they're all going to recoil from this film anyway. Folks expecting a lot more fun are going to be justifiably disappointed, and I blame the film's advertising for this. Take a look at the poster for starters! Instantly it was one of my favourite film posters of all time when I saw it, but it simply isn't representative of the material.
I'll be interested to see if this film manages to take off, or if word of mouth is going to subdue it. It's been compared (pretty vaguely) to Chopper, and Chopper became a cult hit in spite of its own great bleakness, but I don't think Chopper was ever promoted as being something it wasn't.
This is a very well performed film, especially by Emily Barclay as Kat, and it's craftily directed for the most part, but unfortunately in the end the parts don't add up to create much overall effect. There's little suspense and very few surprises along the way to embellish the fatalistic plot. The device of framing the story with news interviews from after the events sometimes has the effect of delaying our access to the inner lives of the characters, especially Kat. I had the feeling we were about twenty minutes into the film before we started to experience anything from her point of view.
Perhaps what struck me the most is the gulf between the way the film's being promoted - as a lively, maybe even wacky, black comedy - and what it actually is; a black and steady portrait of a sociopath. Certainly there are funny moments, but this is by no means a funny film. Kat is a hugely impressive creation, completely unyielding in her unreasonableness and constantly manipulating those around her through her dumb psychopathy in such a way that the line between apparent calculation and banal self-centredness is hard to distinguish. Any film which builds itself around such a relentlessly appalling character is a brave film, but this just isn't a very entertaining film overall.
Even if you're as open to being bathed in dysfunction as I am, it's hard to stay interested in the character when Suburban Mayhem's trajectory feels so static, seeming to move towards quietness and bleakness at the end rather than any kind of intensity. As for those who demand likable characters, well, they're all going to recoil from this film anyway. Folks expecting a lot more fun are going to be justifiably disappointed, and I blame the film's advertising for this. Take a look at the poster for starters! Instantly it was one of my favourite film posters of all time when I saw it, but it simply isn't representative of the material.
I'll be interested to see if this film manages to take off, or if word of mouth is going to subdue it. It's been compared (pretty vaguely) to Chopper, and Chopper became a cult hit in spite of its own great bleakness, but I don't think Chopper was ever promoted as being something it wasn't.
Out-of-control!
lost-in-limbo18 September 2009
Emily Barclay
wow. What an excellently untouchable and stormy performance of teasing manipulation, in what drives and sets the kinetically sensationalized story of crime, drugs, sex, revenge and murder in motion. This sexily gusty little Australian made feature uses an old formula, but the pictorial direction pumps it up with vigorously hard-hitting energy and flashy techniques smothered by a rollicking rock soundtrack featuring homegrown talent. Fashionably mechanical handling throughout, but effectively unapologetic nonetheless. However director Paul Goldman does a good job etching in an authentic atmosphere of the western suburbs. The story follows that of Katrina Skinner
a rebellious 19 year old mum that's into crime, sex, cars and likes to be the 'showpiece' of the town. When her brother is put away for murder, she sets up a plan to hopefully bail him out. However her father (movingly tailored performance by Robert Morgan) is worried, especially about her baby daughter as she goes about leaving others to look after the child (namely her staunch boyfriend played Michael Dorman), as she searches for a recklessly good time. Everyone wants to see her clean up, but she won't have anything to with it and begins to turn on those who she believes are in the way. The plot is done in a fragmented style where in between the story; it would cut to a documentary crew filming people who were somewhat involved with Katrina asking questions about her. It's character-based with its cutting script with it being very vague on motivation, but lingering within is an intense mean-streak and suitably dark and racy comedic elements. Spitefully quirky, but compelling largely due to the unswervingly strong performances.
Nasty, pointless and downright uninteresting at times look at 'quirky' people doing horrible things to one another.
johnnyboyz19 March 2009
Few films will have you come away feeling as sick as I did from Suburban Mayhem, a putrid and quite vile film about despicable people doing despicable things to one another for the sake of daft entertainment. The film is bad, in that depressing and sickening manner that certain 'bad' films are. This is no guilty pleasure and this certainly isn't a study of anything remotely interesting despite the clear intentions it has. What else can you say about a film that brutally murders off the one, decent character whom tries to help others and then resorts to having its lead characters conform to horrific acts of animal cruelty for good measure?
The film centers on a female youth named Katrina (Barclay) and like the hurricane of her namesake, this little monster whirls bucket loads of chaos as she whirls around the general area causing havoc. Katrina has achieved what little ambition she has very early on in the film: her face on newspapers and her figure on television – it's a celebrity status through horrific acts that someone like Charles Manson might know all about but the thing that's more agitating is its obvious reek of Natural Born Killers and how Suburban Mayhem uses the distorted television perspective complete with 'the guilty' speaking into a camera in a mock interview set up – isn't that a clicé yet? If not, why not – I hate the convention and I hate how it makes people that do it feel clever because it 'breaks the fourth wall' and that's so 'out there' when it comes to mainstream cinema. You're not fooling anyone.
So the film revolves around Katrina and we see her story told to us in flashback format. Now, the term anti-hero is one that springs to mind here but I'm not going to apply it to Katrina because she (as does the film overall) doesn't deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as the term. An anti-hero is someone who isn't quite on the level of 'good' but knows what they want and we feel a guilty urge to want them to win, even if it clashes with our own moral codes. Here, Katrina has a child, a child that she neglects and ignores in a couple of scenes that are just disturbing in her ruthlessness. Her father, John (Morgan), threatens to have the child taken away unless she sorts out her drug plagued; mischief plagued and crime plagued life. But she cannot have that and enters femme fatale mode to seduce a local nut-case named Kenny (Hayes) into killing her father for her. I don't think anyone in their right minds is going to want Katrina to get away with this.
The film's draw is a question that doubles up as its own hypothesis: "Can you really get away with murder?" thus tempting us to watch to see if someone actually might. Well, unless you're Jack the Ripper in 19th Century, or whenever it was, Britain – no, you can't. The question the writers and co. should've asked one another in a filmic sense is: "Should you really be able to get away with murder?" This is what they fail to spot by the time Katrina is just about home free and documenting to us her story from the confines of the future. If the film is so interested in the quirky delivery of the study of achieving celebrity fame through infamy then Natural Born Killers sets the bar and Van Sant's 'To Die For' is sub-Natural Born Killers; and Scott's 'Domino' is sub-To Die For which means this film is sub-Domino, which is really scraping the bottom of the barrel given how much I hated Domino.
So the 'anti-hero' on this occasion is not someone who will force us into questioning our own moral codes as much as she will force us to pray that she dies a slow death not too far into the film's beginning. The drug taking; threatening innocents at home; baby rejecting disaster that is Katrina struts about and moves into seducing Kenny for her own dirty work; we are not amused and we are not enthralled and we cannot believe what we're seeing. These days, the idea of becoming an overnight success for young people is, arguably, at its peak what with the extensive reality TV shows and so forth. I only pray this film be seen by as few as these young people as possible because in the end, the film is a glorification of a young girl who has attained celebrity status through things like pregnancy and getting caught up in a murder plot and what-not. What alarms me is that, here in Britain, the film was classed as a '15' certificate meaning most any teenager can access it.
I felt dirty when I watched Suburban Mayhem. The film is misjudged in its overall delivery and presentation of its ideas; a fun, fast and frenetic series of scenes that revolve around trench-coat wearing hermits being told to kill people on the promise of an easy lay from someone we're supposed to be gunning for. If you want a more mature look at working class life in Australia, as made by the Australians, I recommend 2005's 'Peaches' but Suburban Mayhem is a messy and childish exercise best viewed by as few people as possible.
The film centers on a female youth named Katrina (Barclay) and like the hurricane of her namesake, this little monster whirls bucket loads of chaos as she whirls around the general area causing havoc. Katrina has achieved what little ambition she has very early on in the film: her face on newspapers and her figure on television – it's a celebrity status through horrific acts that someone like Charles Manson might know all about but the thing that's more agitating is its obvious reek of Natural Born Killers and how Suburban Mayhem uses the distorted television perspective complete with 'the guilty' speaking into a camera in a mock interview set up – isn't that a clicé yet? If not, why not – I hate the convention and I hate how it makes people that do it feel clever because it 'breaks the fourth wall' and that's so 'out there' when it comes to mainstream cinema. You're not fooling anyone.
So the film revolves around Katrina and we see her story told to us in flashback format. Now, the term anti-hero is one that springs to mind here but I'm not going to apply it to Katrina because she (as does the film overall) doesn't deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as the term. An anti-hero is someone who isn't quite on the level of 'good' but knows what they want and we feel a guilty urge to want them to win, even if it clashes with our own moral codes. Here, Katrina has a child, a child that she neglects and ignores in a couple of scenes that are just disturbing in her ruthlessness. Her father, John (Morgan), threatens to have the child taken away unless she sorts out her drug plagued; mischief plagued and crime plagued life. But she cannot have that and enters femme fatale mode to seduce a local nut-case named Kenny (Hayes) into killing her father for her. I don't think anyone in their right minds is going to want Katrina to get away with this.
The film's draw is a question that doubles up as its own hypothesis: "Can you really get away with murder?" thus tempting us to watch to see if someone actually might. Well, unless you're Jack the Ripper in 19th Century, or whenever it was, Britain – no, you can't. The question the writers and co. should've asked one another in a filmic sense is: "Should you really be able to get away with murder?" This is what they fail to spot by the time Katrina is just about home free and documenting to us her story from the confines of the future. If the film is so interested in the quirky delivery of the study of achieving celebrity fame through infamy then Natural Born Killers sets the bar and Van Sant's 'To Die For' is sub-Natural Born Killers; and Scott's 'Domino' is sub-To Die For which means this film is sub-Domino, which is really scraping the bottom of the barrel given how much I hated Domino.
So the 'anti-hero' on this occasion is not someone who will force us into questioning our own moral codes as much as she will force us to pray that she dies a slow death not too far into the film's beginning. The drug taking; threatening innocents at home; baby rejecting disaster that is Katrina struts about and moves into seducing Kenny for her own dirty work; we are not amused and we are not enthralled and we cannot believe what we're seeing. These days, the idea of becoming an overnight success for young people is, arguably, at its peak what with the extensive reality TV shows and so forth. I only pray this film be seen by as few as these young people as possible because in the end, the film is a glorification of a young girl who has attained celebrity status through things like pregnancy and getting caught up in a murder plot and what-not. What alarms me is that, here in Britain, the film was classed as a '15' certificate meaning most any teenager can access it.
I felt dirty when I watched Suburban Mayhem. The film is misjudged in its overall delivery and presentation of its ideas; a fun, fast and frenetic series of scenes that revolve around trench-coat wearing hermits being told to kill people on the promise of an easy lay from someone we're supposed to be gunning for. If you want a more mature look at working class life in Australia, as made by the Australians, I recommend 2005's 'Peaches' but Suburban Mayhem is a messy and childish exercise best viewed by as few people as possible.
Mad, Bad and very sexy
Philby-329 October 2006
This film, directed by Paul Goldman ("Australian Rules", "The Night We Called it a Day"), is not so much Pulp Fiction Australian style as pulp faction; first-time scriptwriter Alice Bell has cobbled together a story inspired by the real-life murder of her father committed by 19 year old Belinda van Krevel in suburban Wollongong (though the film was shot in Newcastle). Cyclone Katrina, as another reviewer accurately calls her, is indeed an elemental force, unrestrained by social conventions and morality. She has a hopeless passion for her brother Daniel (Laurence Breuls) who is locked up early in the movie for taking the head off a convenience store clerk with a samurai sword during an ineptly executed robbery. Katrina is determined to get him out, and the need to get money for Danny's appeal drives her to organizing her blameless father's murder. In the meantime she drives furiously, has sex with practically every young tradesman in the district and neglects her baby, fortunately largely cared for by her loyal boyfriend Rusty (Michael Dorman), who likes to think of himself as the father.
Whatever production defects this movie may have, it passed the watch test. It really is hard to take your eyes off Emma Barclay as Katrina. Kat is vulgar, rude, lewd, and driven largely by emotion, yet she radiates sexuality, the kind that a well-brought up male feels guilty about acknowledging. She knows what men want; hence the long string of "admirers". Interestingly she tends to adopt the superior position during sexual congress, no doubt to stay in control, for she is a controlling sort of person.
Her environment is standard suburban wasteland (well-off blue collar boring) but it is not obvious why she and her brother have turned out to be such poisonous personalities. Mum, it seems, was a drug addict banished years ago from the family home, but Dad (Robert Morgan) is a decent caring person, a builder by trade and maybe not very perceptive. Perhaps Dad was too indulgent and a firmer line with the kids might have avoided disaster, though his girlfriend "Auntie" Dianne (Genevieve Lemon) puts it all down to genes Grandma and mother both having been mad.
There is an obvious parallel with "The Boys" of a few years ago, which was no comedy but did explain how a truly monstrous crime originated. This is a lighter piece though what Katrina brings about is still pretty nasty. Justice is not done either, which is disturbing.
Even so, whatever is driving Katrina, Emily Barclay makes her totally believable. The rest of the cast are rather overshadowed, but Steve Bastoni is effective as an intimidated policeman and Michael Dorman convincing as Rusty, a moth to Katrina's candle, or rather blowtorch. We know via the mockumentary sections what is coming up, but we still get a surprise. Katrina does rather better than her real-life counterpart, but someone like her is not likely to enjoy a quiet life, or a very long one either.
Whatever production defects this movie may have, it passed the watch test. It really is hard to take your eyes off Emma Barclay as Katrina. Kat is vulgar, rude, lewd, and driven largely by emotion, yet she radiates sexuality, the kind that a well-brought up male feels guilty about acknowledging. She knows what men want; hence the long string of "admirers". Interestingly she tends to adopt the superior position during sexual congress, no doubt to stay in control, for she is a controlling sort of person.
Her environment is standard suburban wasteland (well-off blue collar boring) but it is not obvious why she and her brother have turned out to be such poisonous personalities. Mum, it seems, was a drug addict banished years ago from the family home, but Dad (Robert Morgan) is a decent caring person, a builder by trade and maybe not very perceptive. Perhaps Dad was too indulgent and a firmer line with the kids might have avoided disaster, though his girlfriend "Auntie" Dianne (Genevieve Lemon) puts it all down to genes Grandma and mother both having been mad.
There is an obvious parallel with "The Boys" of a few years ago, which was no comedy but did explain how a truly monstrous crime originated. This is a lighter piece though what Katrina brings about is still pretty nasty. Justice is not done either, which is disturbing.
Even so, whatever is driving Katrina, Emily Barclay makes her totally believable. The rest of the cast are rather overshadowed, but Steve Bastoni is effective as an intimidated policeman and Michael Dorman convincing as Rusty, a moth to Katrina's candle, or rather blowtorch. We know via the mockumentary sections what is coming up, but we still get a surprise. Katrina does rather better than her real-life counterpart, but someone like her is not likely to enjoy a quiet life, or a very long one either.
I agree
davejohnpickering31 July 2006
I completely agree with you. I saw this film at Canne a few months ago and was very surprised that it made it into the film festival. It was by no means up to the quality of the other films in the festival and there was a great deal of shock after the screening from audience members who were really surprised at the less than average quality of the film. I think the film was written by first time screen-writer Alice bell, and it really shows. The script, direction, and performances are really not up to scratch. I agree and was also surprised that this film got commissioned. I have seen some very good Australian films recently, most notably The Proposition and Look Both Ways and was looking forward to yet another quality Australian product. Unfortunately though, Suburban Mayhem just doesn't cut it.
Wow, have we been watching the same film?
nick_stables3 August 2006
Having just seen Suburban Mayhem at a screening event, and really enjoyed it, I was a little shocked to read the first two reviews here! Sure the film doesn't have a major budget, but I thought in general the acting was very good. Michael Dorman as Rusty and Genevieve Lemon as "Aunt" Dianne were particularly good, whilst Emily Barclay was always believable as the thoroughly rotten Katrina.
Katrina is not a character you can empathise with - let alone like, but the movie makes for good car-crash watching. How far will she go to get what she wants? What exactly is the relationship between Kat and Danny? Overall a very dark and comedic movie, with some wicked dialogue. The closing line of the movie was genius, and possibly the best I've seen yet!
Katrina is not a character you can empathise with - let alone like, but the movie makes for good car-crash watching. How far will she go to get what she wants? What exactly is the relationship between Kat and Danny? Overall a very dark and comedic movie, with some wicked dialogue. The closing line of the movie was genius, and possibly the best I've seen yet!
So its not a Hollywood budget... get over it!!!
robbiejay-115 October 2006
So here is the scoop! Australian cinema is eroding at a faster rate than George Bush's approval rating. Add to that the over-powering presence of saturated Hollywood content, then it's fair to say that Suburban Mayhem is a film that deserves some recognition and a fair go in the marketplace. Bordering on Art house, this sure to be cult classic utilizes a quasi doco style format depicting a dark, comical look into the life of Katrina, a master manipulator who will stop at nothing to see her brother released from prison, all the while continually using her convincing charm to get what she wants or maneuver around any obstacle that gets in her way. Blending some great directing, excellent acting and memorable characters, Paul Goldman and Alice Bell have carefully written a film without stereotypically including too much Australian references and slangy dialogue. This movie could well have been shot anywhere and for that reason should carry over well in the foreign marketplace. And for all of you who expect a poorly written, federally funded, slap stick feature produced by a radio DJ or comic -- THIS ISN'T ONE OF THEM!!!
Ambivalence leads to indifference
fertilecelluloid20 January 2007
Warning: Spoilers
A nineteen year old single mother (Emily Barclay) plots to kill her own father because she's a loser; her hope is that she'll get his house and savings. "Suburban Mayhem" could have been a good slice of exploitation, but director Paul Goldman seems ambivalent about the film's tone. Is he making an art film? Is he making a Corman film? Or a Jack Hill film like "Switchblade Sisters"? Ultimately, the film is unsatisfying because it sits on the fence. We get that our "heroine" is a loser and a grand manipulator, but we don't get much else. The film's third act is missing in action, so when the credits start to roll, I asked myself: "Is that it?" The pacing is swift and the film's look is pleasing, but the musical soundtrack is often overbearing and manages to give its non-stop montages a generic feel. Apparently based on a true story, the film lacks focus and is not as overtly fascinating as it ought to be.
Shootin' to thrill in thigh-high boots..
onamission30 October 2006
A darkly comic tale of desperation in the land of discount bourbon and Holden versus Ford. I'm somewhat at a loss to understand the negative reaction in some of the comments posted; understanding the foibles and peculiarities of Australian suburbia is important to seeing the film in its correct context. Emily Barclay sinks her teeth into Katrina with such enthusiasm that as she careens across the landscape with baby in tow over gullible men, naive women, impotent police and her well-meaning father we're tempted more than once to suspend the moral judgement we should be making and simply sit back to enjoy the ride. Questions are asked of the audience as much as of the film's characters, making us uneasy and showing Katrina's real power to manipulate. How much does the need for excitement in our lives stop us from making decisions about what is right or wrong? Is Bailee the get-out-of-jail free card that entitles Katrina to salvation as we find that crime sometimes does pay? A fresh, upfront production that along with recent films like "Kenny" and "Footy Legends" lends confidence to the recovery of the Australian movie industry from the ball and chain of film-school textbook orthodoxy.
Dark, gritty slice-of-lowlife
dave13-112 April 2012
Spoiled suburban girl Katrina turns into a femme fatale monster after her brother goes to prison in this Aussie portrait of a middle class crime wave. The box copy promises more in the way of sex and violence than this picture ultimately delivers, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. The picture cuts back and forth from tell-all interviews to girl-gone-bad flashbacks and the effect, rather surprisingly, is not as jarring as it might be, as the cutaways were well-timed, and the overall pacing was quite slick. A low budget is in evidence, but the creators manage to combine a darkly comic tone with a believable situation and credible characters to create effective drama. Not great by any means but better than many similar films.
A celebration of pop culture excess and misogyny
Needfire9 September 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Just saw Suburban Mayhem at TIFF; it's a brash, eye-popping mess of a movie. It's trying to pay homage to Pulp Fiction with its suggestions of horrible ways of dying--beheading or being bludgeoned to death by an inept killer. These are all loathsome, stupid people who manipulate and copulate their way through life.
The problem with this movie is its lack of purpose of direction. Is this a commentary on the skewed moral compass of these losers who will only find their fifteen minutes of fame by becoming infamous? I'm not sure that the director knew what was happening and just made this flick, hoping that someone would imbue meaning into it.
I don't know what the fuss is all about. There are plenty of films that address immoral characters and their behaviours in a way that makes you think. This film just pushes you over the edge and out the door.
Not worth your time.
The problem with this movie is its lack of purpose of direction. Is this a commentary on the skewed moral compass of these losers who will only find their fifteen minutes of fame by becoming infamous? I'm not sure that the director knew what was happening and just made this flick, hoping that someone would imbue meaning into it.
I don't know what the fuss is all about. There are plenty of films that address immoral characters and their behaviours in a way that makes you think. This film just pushes you over the edge and out the door.
Not worth your time.
Edgy and so full of the wrong things in life
joneslja24 October 2006
I found this movie to be full of 'the bad things' - it's been a while since a movie has left me feeling so upset and bad! For the viewer, things seem to go from bad to worse, with the lead character on a manipulative rampage, using her bad girl sexuality that some men just can't get enough of to make them do all sorts of wrong things.
How can you hate Katrina? Even after watching her do all of these awful things in 'Suburban Mayhem', as a male you still can't stop getting some kind of a kick out of her.
The director claims there is 'no other (female) character like Katrina in Australian cinematic history' - while I'm not expert on the subject, I certainly can't think of one! In the vein of The Opposite of Sex (so I'm told) mixed with Natural Born Killers. A bit like a car crash - you know you shouldn't look but you can't look away from the horror!
How can you hate Katrina? Even after watching her do all of these awful things in 'Suburban Mayhem', as a male you still can't stop getting some kind of a kick out of her.
The director claims there is 'no other (female) character like Katrina in Australian cinematic history' - while I'm not expert on the subject, I certainly can't think of one! In the vein of The Opposite of Sex (so I'm told) mixed with Natural Born Killers. A bit like a car crash - you know you shouldn't look but you can't look away from the horror!
somebody missed the mark completely
salsatee7315 November 2006
I was very excited to see this film after all the hype, i was also looking forward to a funny, insightful portrait of 'SUBURBAN MAYHEM' especially having grown up in a place like the one depicted in the film.
I was extremely disappointed. I actually found myself bored for the entire length of the film and it only runs for 90mins. I really can't understand how people are saying this is thrilling or a fantastic Austalian film. It is actually very weak, boring with not much mayhem.
I thought Barclay was outstanding but the script and direction was sloppy, the 'documentary' format annoyed me, totally unnecessary.
I can see what was trying to be achieved but the script lacked a real depth and direction and i found the characters to be two dimensional.
I don't know who is at fault here, the direction or the writing, maybe it was both - but somebody missed the mark completely.
I was extremely disappointed. I actually found myself bored for the entire length of the film and it only runs for 90mins. I really can't understand how people are saying this is thrilling or a fantastic Austalian film. It is actually very weak, boring with not much mayhem.
I thought Barclay was outstanding but the script and direction was sloppy, the 'documentary' format annoyed me, totally unnecessary.
I can see what was trying to be achieved but the script lacked a real depth and direction and i found the characters to be two dimensional.
I don't know who is at fault here, the direction or the writing, maybe it was both - but somebody missed the mark completely.
Tries hard to be transgressive, but it just isn't.
movedout6 May 2007
Paul Goldman and Alice Bell's mockumentary "Suburban Mayhem" starts off with some measure of interest in its subjects' state of arrested development, but manages to fracture its focus into different pieces before it's through. The Aussie production does allude to its working class suburb's infant terrible syndrome, channeling the seminal "Romper Stomper" well enough by juggling murder, delinquency and a hefty pacing of sex, drugs and roll 'n' roll. However, setting the stage just doesn't cut it when the noxious characters woefully expose its wafer-thin plotting. Goldman's self-satisfied intentions are made clear enough and tacky dinner-table transgressions aside; the film's black comedy routine is merely discernible at best but it's just not particularly biting or droll. Katrina (Emily Barclay), its patricidal, chain-smoking femme fatale shoulders the film's best scenes despite the young character's tendency to regress into a badge for its director to smugly flash about as the latest and loudest provocateur of Australia's idyllic suburbia.
I'm stuck in the middle
suekatemasters5 August 2006
There sure is differing comments on this page. I have to say though, I am stuck in the middle of them all. I don't think the movie is as bad as the first two comments, i also don't think the movie is as good as the third comment. It's not bad, and it's not good. It's an OK movie. It could have been a lot better. I don't agree with the first two comments, and I thought the performances were acceptable. Emily Barclay is good, Michael Dorman is passable, (just, mind you), and the ensemble cast were good. I think the main problem with this movie was summed up very well from a Hollywood Reporter review I recently read, it goes something like this: "If you are going to spend 90 minutes with a wild animal, something about that character should intrigue and engage you. Nothing here does." Having said that, the film is OK, just not good. It's definitely a DVD movie for a rainy Sunday afternoon.
Cyclone Katrina
Sergio_Falco28 August 2006
Warning: Spoilers
Suburban Mayhem is a raucous, nasty, in-your-face blast of often very black comedy. It's kind of like the mutant love child of Kath and Kim coupled with Natural Born Killers. It details the sordid life and times of a barely-out-of-her-teens sociopath and the trail of havoc she wreaks across an atypical brick veneer/Neighbors style suburban wasteland.
It's interesting that there are many negative reactions to the film on IMDb. I suppose that's mostly because the film refuses to apologise for offering up an amoral protagonist, and that's fine by me - whoever said that drama has to be about likable characters anyway? For me, it's enough that I'm interested in them and what they do, and in this instance, watching as these quite horrendous people crash and burn their way heedlessly through their lives held a kind of demented fascination. Is there a moral in all of this 'mayhem'? Perhaps. Perhaps the way Katrina gets her comeuppance in the final scene with her brother in jail is enough - but perhaps also, this film is a perfect one for John Howard's Australia. After all, when we, as a nation, can go out and willingly re-elect a liar and a war criminal, can we honestly say there is any real morality left in our land? Why shouldn't Katrina behave like she does? Hasn't her contemporary culture, for the most part, told her it's OK - don't worry, you can lie, manipulate and even kill - and the only real sin is getting caught? If we are outraged that she gets away with it, why? For me, these are all questions that the film threw up and for that I am thankful, as Australian cinema is usually committed to achieving a kind of frightened mediocrity which you depart from at your peril.
It isn't perfect and here and there the tone falters a bit and the intentional rawness occasionally slips into sloppiness, but for the most part, Suburban Mayhem is a wild, outrageous and startling ride. Recommended.
It's interesting that there are many negative reactions to the film on IMDb. I suppose that's mostly because the film refuses to apologise for offering up an amoral protagonist, and that's fine by me - whoever said that drama has to be about likable characters anyway? For me, it's enough that I'm interested in them and what they do, and in this instance, watching as these quite horrendous people crash and burn their way heedlessly through their lives held a kind of demented fascination. Is there a moral in all of this 'mayhem'? Perhaps. Perhaps the way Katrina gets her comeuppance in the final scene with her brother in jail is enough - but perhaps also, this film is a perfect one for John Howard's Australia. After all, when we, as a nation, can go out and willingly re-elect a liar and a war criminal, can we honestly say there is any real morality left in our land? Why shouldn't Katrina behave like she does? Hasn't her contemporary culture, for the most part, told her it's OK - don't worry, you can lie, manipulate and even kill - and the only real sin is getting caught? If we are outraged that she gets away with it, why? For me, these are all questions that the film threw up and for that I am thankful, as Australian cinema is usually committed to achieving a kind of frightened mediocrity which you depart from at your peril.
It isn't perfect and here and there the tone falters a bit and the intentional rawness occasionally slips into sloppiness, but for the most part, Suburban Mayhem is a wild, outrageous and startling ride. Recommended.
Nothing can quell her demons...
anthonyjlangford20 April 2009
The 2006 I.F. awards for Alice Bell's script and for lead actress Emily Barclay (In my Father's Den) already cements Suburban Mayhem's place as one of the more challenging Australian films of recent years. Ms Barclay's nod over Candy's Abbie Cornish gives credence to the power of her performance. To say that her character, 19 year old Kat is gutsy is on par with saying that the Terminator has a few strong points.
Kat has balls of steel and isn't afraid to use them. Even though she is already a mother with a supportive boyfriend, she has other ideas about her suburban existence. She is out of control and anyone in her path is fair game. Her antics can make you laugh, but that's only to contain the anxiety. As highlighted in The Boys, such people do exist in suburbia; they could be living next door. In this communication driven age, we are led away from face to face contact and our fears of our neighbors are allowed to manifest. Bell plays on this beautifully.
Kat has support around her, yet nothing can quell her demons. Are we products of our environment or we doomed to live according to our genetic predisposition? Paul Goldman's direction is tight, with a distinctive style and builds the tension to breaking point, though his use of music is sometimes over bearing and feels like merely a device to cover the slower scenes. By using the old plot device of showing the conclusion at the beginning, we always know where this is going, and sometimes it feels as though we're simply waiting for the film to catch up.
Goldman has surrounded Barclay with a strong cast, particularly Mia Wasikowska as unfortunate participant Lilya and Michael Dorman as a frustrated romantic with more heart than sense. However it is Barclay's scenes with her father, Robert Morgan which oozes truth and holds the film together. We feel his frustration and hope that something will get through.
However, its all too obvious. Kat is on a mission. This is part of her problem. She borders on the one dimensional, and yet it is to Barclay's credit that she inspires some little hope for her character where the scriptwriter seemingly had none. If only we had something to relate to in Kat, this might have lifted Suburban Mayhem from being a good Australian film, to one of the greats.
And yet, you leave the cinema thinking that she and others like her might still be out there, somewhere. Be afraid? Very
Kat has balls of steel and isn't afraid to use them. Even though she is already a mother with a supportive boyfriend, she has other ideas about her suburban existence. She is out of control and anyone in her path is fair game. Her antics can make you laugh, but that's only to contain the anxiety. As highlighted in The Boys, such people do exist in suburbia; they could be living next door. In this communication driven age, we are led away from face to face contact and our fears of our neighbors are allowed to manifest. Bell plays on this beautifully.
Kat has support around her, yet nothing can quell her demons. Are we products of our environment or we doomed to live according to our genetic predisposition? Paul Goldman's direction is tight, with a distinctive style and builds the tension to breaking point, though his use of music is sometimes over bearing and feels like merely a device to cover the slower scenes. By using the old plot device of showing the conclusion at the beginning, we always know where this is going, and sometimes it feels as though we're simply waiting for the film to catch up.
Goldman has surrounded Barclay with a strong cast, particularly Mia Wasikowska as unfortunate participant Lilya and Michael Dorman as a frustrated romantic with more heart than sense. However it is Barclay's scenes with her father, Robert Morgan which oozes truth and holds the film together. We feel his frustration and hope that something will get through.
However, its all too obvious. Kat is on a mission. This is part of her problem. She borders on the one dimensional, and yet it is to Barclay's credit that she inspires some little hope for her character where the scriptwriter seemingly had none. If only we had something to relate to in Kat, this might have lifted Suburban Mayhem from being a good Australian film, to one of the greats.
And yet, you leave the cinema thinking that she and others like her might still be out there, somewhere. Be afraid? Very
Suburban Mayhem
kbnutrition14 August 2006
I was elated when I won two tickets to the closing night film at The Melbourne International Film Festival. Suburban Mayhem had been wrongly titled and I was at a loss to establish how such a film could get made. What would I be able to learn from an attractive girl who likes to suck and .uck and whose only redeeming feature is a cute baby. This film should of been titled "Suburban Misogyny". I think that in this day and age it is very sad that for whatever reason women are still being perceived in such light on screen. I found this film meaningless and lost. The characters in this film were unlikable and had little room for development. Even the father who you were supposed to like was shallow and out of depth. I went into this film wanting to like it but left feeling very very empty.
Here we go...
tony-camel5 March 2007
Warning: Spoilers
An examination of the whole nature vs nurture argument, the answer to which it wisely shies away from, Suburban Mayhem is a thrilling, stimulating film that will excite debate everywhere it's shown. Teenagers have always been demonised, of course, but never more so than now, surely, when they are blamed for everything from rising crime figures to the impact on our planet of global warming. Certainly the heroine of Paul Goldman's film, Katrina, is a creature beloved of the tabloids; a 19-year-old femme fatale in a mini-skirt and black leather boots whose mobile is tucked, teasingly, into her cleavage.
Indeed the star's creator, writer Alice Bell, constructed Katrina from numerous court hearings and newspaper tales, all of which could have produced a parody of a contemporary teenager. Thankfully, it did not. Rather, New Zealand actress Emily Barclay brings Katrina vividly to life, as her story unfolds in flashback, punctuated by interviews with those who have crossed her path along the way, from her father's one-time girlfriend, Dianne (Genevieve Lemon), to ex-friend, Lilya (Mia Wasikowska).
Indeed the star's creator, writer Alice Bell, constructed Katrina from numerous court hearings and newspaper tales, all of which could have produced a parody of a contemporary teenager. Thankfully, it did not. Rather, New Zealand actress Emily Barclay brings Katrina vividly to life, as her story unfolds in flashback, punctuated by interviews with those who have crossed her path along the way, from her father's one-time girlfriend, Dianne (Genevieve Lemon), to ex-friend, Lilya (Mia Wasikowska).
Never open the door for the devil
nogodnomasters24 October 2017
Warning: Spoilers
Katrina Skinner (Emily Barclay) was accused of killing her father and she is free. This is the story as to what really happened told as a flashback. Katrina is very manipulative. She loves her brother Danny (Laurence Breuls) almost in an unhealthy way. She wants to get money for an appeal for a murder he committed. She has a daughter which she pawns off on everyone, yet wants to be with her when she wants to be with her. She uses her raw sexuality to get what she wants, although she never seems happy.
Cult film. "dark comedy" Guide: F-word, sex, nudity (Emily Barclay).
Cult film. "dark comedy" Guide: F-word, sex, nudity (Emily Barclay).
Terrible!!
redbeanbagthatsgood30 July 2006
This is without a doubt the WORST movie I have seen in years. Absolutely terrible. The whole film revolves around a 19 year old girl who decides she wants to kill her father. She is a mean and vile character and one can't help but ask?...who wants to sit in a theatre and watch a film about a character you absolutely despise?? There is no empathy for this character therefore you couldn't give a damn what happens to her, or what happens in the film. It also has one of the worst performances on screen by Australian actor Michael Dorman. How did this movie ever get made? It's pretentious, uninvolving, boring, and downright terrible. I strongly recommend you save your money and do not go and see this movie. If you don't believe me, check out the reviews....EVERY SINGLE REVIEW I have seen of this movie is negative. No-one likes it...and i completely understand why.
An Odd but Entertaining Black Comedy
Uriah4315 May 2020
This rather odd film essentially revolves around a young woman by the name of "Katrina Skinner" (Emily Barclay) who--along with her older brother "Danny Skinner" (Laurence Bruels)--has been allowed to do anything they want because their father, "John Skinner" (Robert Morgan) has spoiled them since the time they were born. As a result, Danny has received a life sentence for murdering a convenience store clerk and Katrina is a single mom with no job and does whatever she feels like doing at any given moment. Nobody can control her and each day she gets much worse to the point that she is even considering murdering her father to gain control of his house. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this turned out to be much better than I initially thought as Emily Barclay put in an outstanding performance and the plot kept getting more bizarre as the film progressed. That being said, however, I should point out that the version I saw had one glaring technical issue involving a dramatic rise in volume whenever music was introduced in a scene. Whether this was intentional or simply the result of an inept sound mixer is not known to me. Likewise, I didn't especially care for some of the vulgar language but perhaps the director (Paul Goldman) felt it was necessary to achieve a certain desired effect. Be that as it may, I enjoyed this film for the most part and all things considered I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.
Capitol B for Boring. Saw the movie tonight with Director Q & A session.
markspencer_1727 September 2006
Boring Boring Boring.
Sometimes I go into a film not wanting to be there or with negative pre-conceptions only to be blown away with it's originality and entertainment values. This was not one of these films.
In an age of free to air TV programming mainly consisting of shows depicting death, killing and women using their sexuality to put men down, Suburban Mayhem has both for $15.
During the Q&A after film writer (Alice Bell) could not answer the question asking her whether she liked her main character or not. Considering the films content I wonder what did her father did to her ?
I cannot believe that the writer and the director would think that this was an interesting time for a movie like this. I cannot see anything new about it.
If you really want to see killing just turn on the TV, people are doing it for real !!!!!
The worst thing about it ? Its not entertaining !!!!!
Save your hard earned money.
Sometimes I go into a film not wanting to be there or with negative pre-conceptions only to be blown away with it's originality and entertainment values. This was not one of these films.
In an age of free to air TV programming mainly consisting of shows depicting death, killing and women using their sexuality to put men down, Suburban Mayhem has both for $15.
During the Q&A after film writer (Alice Bell) could not answer the question asking her whether she liked her main character or not. Considering the films content I wonder what did her father did to her ?
I cannot believe that the writer and the director would think that this was an interesting time for a movie like this. I cannot see anything new about it.
If you really want to see killing just turn on the TV, people are doing it for real !!!!!
The worst thing about it ? Its not entertaining !!!!!
Save your hard earned money.
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