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The Artist

Beautifully made, surprisingly fresh, and there’s no denying its charm, but ultimately, it’s a slight case of style over substance.

Martha Marcy May Marlene

Driven by Elizabeth Olsen’s mesmerising lead performance, this languid and unsettling story buries deep into your mind

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I Love You Too (Film)

by Annette Basile | May 05, 2010 12:45 | Edited May 05, 2010 12:50

Fresh, funny and uncontrived, this local drama deserves to be a local box office success

Fresh, funny and uncontrived, the homegrown I Love You Too is the antidote to all the mindless, make-a-buck comedies from Hollywood. On the surface, it looks like a rom-com, but it's actually considerably more. It may be about love, but it also examines other types of bonds - those between siblings, best mates and odd-couple friends.

 

At the centre of these relationships is Jim (Brendan Cowell) - a boy disguised as a man. He's at a crisis point with English girlfriend Alice (Australian actress Yvonne Strahovski, from TV's Chuck); she wants a commitment that he's incapable of giving, so she's hot-footing it back to Britain. The film follows Jim's journey to win Alice back, but it doesn't take the traditional rom-com route. It veers into buddy flick territory when Jim meets Charlie (American import and little guy Peter Dinklage), and also plays like a belated coming of age film.   

 

Attractively shot in Melbourne with a warm, witty script from former Rove funnyman Peter Helliar, this comedy impresses on every level. The performances are great - Dinklage's spiky delivery is tremendously entertaining, while Cowell makes a likeable lead. Strahovski is lovely as Alice, and Megan Gale is shockingly good in her support role. Helliar himself ably plays Jim's mate Blake, who has also failed to launch into adulthood, and expresses the universal feeling of being on the outer when a close friend finds a partner and/or another best buddy. 

 

In her feature debut, television director Daina Reid reveals an instinct for what works on the big screen. There are certain elements that had the potential to seem shoe-horned in, but they all fit naturally into the grand plan, and Reid deftly handles several narrative threads. This film has undeniable commercial leanings, and may prove to be a local box office successes story - and it deserves to be.