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A man's gotta do - John Howard, Rebecca Frith, Alyssa McClelland, Chris Kennedy

Threat advisory: Elevated - Significant risk of entertaining activities

Movie propaganda

Most men hold their head high, put their backs to the wall and do what they must do to give their family what they want. This is the story of one such man. Eddy (John Howard) has a fish trawler, a beautiful home with all the mod cons, an attractive wife Yvonne and a 19-year-old daughter Chantelle who is engaged to air-con specialist. Life seems pretty normal except Eddy is also a stand-over man, his last sidekick has two broken legs, his wife is having a fling with the plumber and Chantelle's Russian fiancé Rudi has seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth.

Persons of interest

John Howard .... Eddy
Rebecca Frith .... Yvonne
Alyssa McClelland .... Chantelle
Gyton Grantley .... Dominic
Amie Mckenna .... Delores
Rohan Nicol .... Paul
Tony Barry .... Dr Savage
Helen Thomson .... Tina
Jo-Anne Cahill .... Sylvia
Lynne McGimpsey .... Josephina
Manuel Terron .... Rudi
Rowan Jackson .... Nigel
Vasa Gavriloska .... Svetlana
Chris Kennedy .... Director

Cinematic intelligence sources

A man's gotta do official movie site
A man's gotta do production notes
A man's gotta do movie trailers:

QuickTime

Awards and film festivals:

Cinematic Intelligence Agency Trenchcoat Awards 2004: Nominated: Best actor/s with a penis (John Howard), Best Australian or New Zealand film, Best white trash (Eddy - John Howard), Best criminal (Eddy - John Howard)
Montréal World Film Festival 2004: World première; Won: Audience Award: Zenith d'or for Best Film from Oceania

Studios and distributors:

Hopscotch Films

Intelligence analyst

Special Agent Matti

Theatrical report

A man's gotta do (what a man's gotta do) is the tale of a loveable Aussie larrikin who spends most of his time fishing but has a sideline in crime. It's as much a hobby as it is a profession as it helps him unwind at the end of a long, hard day at the nets. Like you do. It's a small film - as much involved with the ongoing soap opera that is the life of Eddy's family and friends - but that doesn't mean it isn't worth watching. After all, size isn't everything.

John Howard does a remarkable acting job, coming across as more Eddy than Johnny. That's a good thing, especially for a character who would be easy to turn into a caricature. Gyton Grantley makes a good newbie offsider. And he's kind of cute. In a geeky kind of way.

A man's gotta do has a lovely, dark sense of humour, which is an important aspect of the Australian cinema; the blacker the comedy, the better. Any film with a lead character named Chantelle is a comedy. Don't you worry about that.

See A man's gotta do before it disappears onto DVD rental: the big screen adds a sparkle that mere television cannot capture. Enjoy.