Hey Hey It's Esther Blueburger

Review by Sean Lynch

Hey hey - we've got the Australian made movie of the year on our hands!

Is it the best film of the year? No. Is it the most original? No. Is it the closest thing Australia has come to a truly enjoyable, well developed, presented and executed, commercially and internationally viable film since Crocodile Dundee? Heck yes!

Esther Blueburger is the near perfect coming of age comedy that Looking For Alibrandi almost was just under a decade ago, exploring to perfection what it’s really like to be an outsider in your own world (without ever really going into the weird absurdist "wacky" territory most Aussie films tended to do throughout the '90s and early '00s).

This delightful little flick follows the oddly named Esther (superb newcomer, Danielle Catanzariti) who is unlike any other girl: she's a nerdy Jew (a pretty rare mix in Australian society), she befriends a duck, talks to God through the toilet and break-dances at her Bar Mitzvah. 

Add to this the fact her uppity all-girls private school is a daily torment of mind-numbing conformity, as well as a mum who is so up tight (to borrow a phrase from Ferris Beuller) "if you stuck a lump of coal up her a**, in two weeks, you'd have a diamond". 

However life soon changes course forever when Esther meets free-spirit Sunni, (Whale Riders' Keisha Castle-Hughes) and her like minded mother Mary (Toni Collette in fine form as always) as she soon learns that it’s okay to be different and being true to yourself is more important than fitting in.

The message of the film is by no means new territory, it's just something which often isn't explored very well within Australian films. 

Would it stand up just as well if it didn't have the home ground advantage? Perhaps. It at no point makes Esther infallible (there is a scene in a back alley way which may disturb some), but at the same time, never allows her to be totally to blame for her predicament.

The real star of the film is Catanzariti who gives such a superb performance as Esther, it's almost a shame that she was born Australian (and will likely miss out on the opportunities that Dakota Fanning or Abigail Breslin received in their home country). She conveys such passion, yet with the kind of comedic timing that most hardened female comedians would die for. 

In fact, the entire cast are at their peak, with not one performer giving an "Aussie Soap" delivery of lines - everyone's playing their "A Game" here.

We failed with Hating Alison Ashley, we got close with Alibrandi - but it seems Australia has finally created a strong, likable and relatable female lead which we can be proud of (and hopefully) support at our local cinema.

4 out of 5

Hey Hey It's Esther Blueburger
Australian release: 20th March, 2008
Cast: Danielle Catanzariti, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Toni Collette
Director: Cathy Randall
Movie Website: Official Website