Charlie & Boots
- Year:2009
- Rating:M
- Director:Dean Murphy
- Cast:Danny Baldwin, Roy Billing, Paul Hogan, Shane Jacobson
- Release Date:September 03, 2009
- Distributor:Paramount/ Transmission
- Running time:101 minutes
- Film Worth:$13.00
- FILMINK rates movies out of $20 - the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Beautiful locations add texture to this heart-warming comedy that never fails to charm.
There are three main characters in this movie - Charlie McFarland (Paul Hogan), Boots McFarland (Shane Jacobson) and Australia - and they're all fantastic! Director/co-writer Dean Murphy (Strange Bedfellows) succeeds in portraying typical Aussie characters that, no matter how colourful, don't come across as cardboard caricatures. There's so much heart in this comedy/drama that even the feel-good clichés that it throws at you from time to time seem charming.
After the sudden death of his beloved wife Grace, Charlie - a hardworking farmer in Warrnambool who's always felt content with the way that his life has turned out - withdraws into his grief. In the hope of reconnecting with his father, Boots - who is trying to recover from a recent divorce and another family tragedy - talks the reluctant Charlie into going on a fishing trip. What he fails to tell his dad is that they're not going to the local fishing spot, but rather to Cape York, the northernmost point of Australia... which just happens to be over 4,800 kilometres away.
Hats off to Murphy and his scouting team for picking some of the most fascinating and picturesque places in Australia and making them central to the story - from the Grampians and Tamworth's Golden Guitar, to the spectacular Great Barrier Reef. Most of the film's good-natured comedy comes from the interaction between the main characters, as well as cool cameos (go Roy Billing!) But where Hogan and Jacobson really excel is at hitting all the right dramatic notes without ever falling into cheap melodrama.
In the end, Charlie & Boots is a clever road movie that proves that family-friendly is not synonymous with Disney-dumb. It might not be the most original movie, but Charlie & Boots will surely plant a smile on your face - and who can complain about that?
