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Crackers

Threat advisory: High - High risk of entertaining activities

Movie propaganda

Larceny, adultery, sabotage and treachery... yes, just your average Christmas with the Dredge family.

Twelve-year-old Joey Dredge (Daniel Kellie) is in trouble... again. Expelled for jumping off the school roof (again), he's haunted by the death of his father and hates his mother's (Susan Lyons) new boyfriend (Peter Rowsthorn) and bully-boy son (Christopher Chapman). Compounding his misery is the knowledge that he has to spend Christmas with them at the family beach house.

Things look grim until the unexpected arrival of great-grandfather, Albert (Warren Mitchell), fresh from a stint in prison. Forced to share the back shed with this swearing, farting, devious octogenarian who beats up thugs when the occasion demands, Joey's life changes.

Between barbecuing the family dog, performing a self-burial and causing his intended step-father to consume a startling amount of hash, Joey learns a few life lessons from Albert, who, despite his many vices, instills within Joey the strength to accept the past and embrace the future.

Persons of interest

Daniel Kellie .... Joey Dredge
Susan Lyons .... Mrs Dredge
Peter Rowsthorn
Christopher Chapman
Warren Mitchell .... Albert
Terry Gill
Valerie Bader
Maggie King

Intelligence analyst

Special Agent Matti

Theatrical report

A waste!

This film had to go one of two ways. Drama or farce. Unfortunately, the creators tried to do both and it didn't work. While barbecuing the family dog is an incredibly funny concept, killing your great-grandfather isn't. Catching your grandfather committing adultery with your great-aunt in the chicken coop is funny, having your grandmother watch on video isn't. Doping your de facto step-father's Christmas mince pie is funny, having him walk out on your pregnant mother isn't.

Crackers tries too hard to be two things at the same time and therefore fails at both. As a drama, it is undercut by the low-brow humour (if fart jokes can be called humour). As a comedy, it is overshadowed by the drama.

So the big question is should you watch it? Well, if you have a family that self-destructs at Christmas, you'll find it amusing, occasionally hilarious (barbecuing the family dog IS a classic), often dark, sometimes disturbing, but generally rewarding. (My family is wonderful: never arguing, and when coming together it is for the sharing of love and affection. If they didn't happen to be such cynical bastards just the thought of it would make me puke.) But I really don't get this fear of the family Christmas, so much of this film was lost on me.

However, barbecuing the family dog makes it all worth while, so yes, I can recommend Crackers for when you're blobbing on the sofa after Christmas lunch, especially if you like Carry on movies.

PS: My flatmates found it hilariously funny, but they were always a little strange, anyway.

Security censorship classification

M (Medium level sex scenes, drug references)

Not for public release in Australia before date

2 December 1998