Kath & Kimderella
- Year:2012
- Rating:PG
- Director:Ted Emery
- Cast:Gina Riley, Glenn Robbins, Peter Rowsthorn, Magda Szubanski, Jane Turner
- Release Date:September 06, 2012
- Distributor:Roadshow
- Running time:86 minutes
- Film Worth:$17.00
- FILMINK rates movies out of $20 - the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
It may not be a slickly, richly cinematic experience, but it’s something more important than that: funny.
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What’s that noise? The critics sharpening their knives? The first axe-strike cutting into a particularly tall poppy? When the hit TV series, Kath & Kim – Gina Riley and Jane Turner’s doco-style comedy series about bouncy suburban go-getter, Kath Day-Knight (Turner), and her perennially unimpressed daughter, Kim Craig (Riley) – moved from its initial home on the ABC to Channel 7, the critics were up in arms, lambasting the show for a perceived drop in quality. All that bitching from the sidelines came despite the fact that the series was not only a runaway ratings success (pulling in bigger viewer numbers than ever before), but also an utterly hilarious collection of episodes. It’s a certainty that the duo’s movie, Kath & Kimderella, will attract the same kind of sneering response from those who think Wes Anderson is a genius and rave that Diablo Cody is The Second Coming. If, however, you’ve enjoyed all of Kath & Kim’s small screen antics, chances are that you’ll like their first big screen outing too.
Five years after their last TV appearance, Fountain Lakes’ foxiest ladies finally make their long awaited cinema debut. And after four series and a telemovie, Kath & Kim are still fighting fit and uproariously funny. In a goofy, sparkly fairytale adventure, the cross-generational duo leaves Australian suburbia behind for the glitz and glamour of Italy, where they promptly find themselves under the bejewelled wing of the apparently charming but actually despotic King Javier (Rob Sitch in a hilarious slice of pantomime), whose masked, mysterious son ends up enamoured of the slightly-more-impressed-than-usual Kim, who fancies herself as a bit of a real life princess. But King Javier also has romance on his mind, and the jaunty Kath is the one in his smarmy crosshairs. Meanwhile, Kath & Kim’s significant others – purveyor of fine meats, Kel Knight (Glenn Robbins), and the haplessly put upon Brett Craig (Peter Rowsthorn) – get wind of what’s bubbling away in Italy, and make preparations to crash the impending royal wedding.
Though the cinematography is slicker, the scenery prettier, and the narrative more shaped, Kath & Kimderella pretty much sticks to the formula of the TV series. The big name cameos are left to an absolute minimum, and Kath & Kim are front and centre, with Turner and Riley delivering typically hilarious performances. The humour is far from cutting edge or sophisticated, but that’s always been part of the appeal of Kath & Kim – there’s a warmth and generosity at work here, and the appeal of the pair has always been in their eminent accessibility and relatability. While some may legitimately question whether Kath & Kimderella is actually cinematic, fans of the characters will likely come up with a more important verdict: it’s funny.
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