Suburban Mayhem
Review
by Clint Morris
Hurricane
Katrina is uncontrollable, relentless, menacing, manipulative and
unpredictable – and so was the wild storm that ravaged New Orleans a
couple of months back. Remember The Paxtons, the terminally unemployed slackers that A Current Affair
profiled years ago? Now imagine them without the microscopic amount of
scruples they had left, give them some newfound confidence, and hand
them a key to the gun cupboard. That, for all intents and purposes, may
have served as the pitch for Paul Goldman’s fast-paced feral romp, Suburban Mayhem. New
Zealand actress Emily Barclay wears the slutty skirts and hooker boots
to play teenage basket case, Katrina. Having slept with every guy in
town, it’s no surprise that she’s already with kid, and an acidic
reputation. When her beloved brother is arrested for murder and thrown
in jail, and the cops start hassling her about her callous activities,
Katrina starts to plot her revenge against the ‘big men’ – roping in
her male comrades to help see the plan through. Suburban Mayhem,
though significantly embroidered, is actually a pretty close
representation of another segment of our country’s popular: the scumbag
feral. You know the type; there is one in every street. They’re loud,
they’re rough, they smoke crack from the bonnet of their commodores,
and most of them have about ten kids before they’re 21. Goldman’s film
takes every element we represent with that subdivision, turns it up to
11 and watches us cringe. For the most part, Suburban Mayhem
– despite the accolades its been nominated for, and the rave reviews
its garnering – is a pretty average film. Its only gaining attention
because it is so different to the other films – especially Australian –
films out there. Yes, the performances are good – Barclay is especially
impressive, and does deserve an award or two for her brave performance
– but the film struggles to stay afloat at the best of times. It’s one
thing to have an interesting treatment, another to be able to flesh it
out to heavy screenplay size – and unfortunately, Goldman seems unsure
what to do with his characters once the first hour ticks by. There’s Mayhem here all right, but it’s nothing you can’t wait for DVD to witness. 3 out
of 5
Suburban Mayhem
Australian release: 26th October, 2006
Cast: Emily Barclay, Michael Dorman, Alexandra Fletcher
Director: Paul Goldman
Website: Click
here.
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