Introducing the Dwights - R
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Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that although this Australian film is positioned as a quirky family comedy, it's actually quite dark. The main character is a comedienne who's trying to make a last run for stardom just as her sons become more independent, which leaves her feeling abandoned and threatened. A couple's frequent sex scenes are often fairly graphic (bare breasts, but no genitals), as is the language ("f--k," "s--t," and more). Characters drink freely, and their drinking leads to behavior they later regret (for example, a mother threatens to abandon her children and orders them out of her house).
Families can talk about what it's like to have a family member who's physically or mentally disabled. What kind of responsibilities and pressures does that add to the family dynamic? How do the Dwights rise to the occasion (or not)? How often do you see families like the Dwights on TV or in the movies? Also, what about Tim and Jill's relationship? Although it appears to revolve mostly around sex, it also seems quite loving, too -- is that realistic? Does it seem like they're rushing things?
Common Sense Review
If a comedian tells a good joke and there's no one around to laugh, is it still funny? Not if the comic is Jean Dwight (Brenda Blethyn), a short-order cook who once tasted fame and desperately wants it again in director Cherie Nowlan's uneven-yet-moving dramedy INTRODUCING THE DWIGHTS.
Jean used to be semi-famous -- hobnobbing with the likes of Benny Hill -- until she met her now ex-husband, one-hit-wonder singer John (Frankie J. Holden), and followed him to his native Australia. They proceeded to have two sons -- Mark (Richard Wilson), who's disabled (his umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck too long), and Tim (Khan Chittenden), who's grown up to be Jean's dutiful sidekick, driving her to her two-bit gigs.
It's a happy-enough setup, in a way. But it's painfully claustrophobic, too, especially for Tim. So when Mark starts taking phone calls from his "girlfriend," who's also disabled -- and, worse, Tim falls in love with the free-spirited (and, much to Jean's dismay, strong-willed) Jill (Emma Booth) -- Jean feels her precarious world tumbling around her feet.
Blethyn ably maneuvers in a role that careens from "raunchy homemaker" (the name of Jean's act) to terminally disappointed and lonely empty-nester, an existence her character is anxious to avoid but can't. It's an admirable turn -- loud, brassy and selfish -- but only just. When the laughs finally give way to tears, you do feel sorry for her.
Booth makes a worthy foe for Blethyn's Jean -- her Jill is insecure but determined to make her relationship work -- and Chittenden is persuasive enough as the devoted son who finally lives for himself, despite the costs. (Wilson, meanwhile, gets an A for effort but strays out of character so often that it's distracting.)
But despite its mostly strong performances and fine script, the film can't quite get the crowd on its feet. Its tone shifts awkwardly: Is it a comedy about familial love and hate? A realistic study of mother-in-law/future-daughter-in-law jealousy? A tragedy about lives not lived enough? And the ending is all too trite for a movie that exhibits, at moments, such delicious bite.
For other movies about dysfunctional families, try What's Eating Gilbert Grape? (in which Leonardo DiCaprio's portrayal of a disabled boy is much more on target than Wilson's) or The Royal Tenenbaums.
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Sexual ContentPlentiful, and plenty explicit. Everything from a couple kissing deeply in a car to scenes in which they're shown naked (breasts are bared, but no genitalia), astride each other or simulating oral sex. Bare breasts are flashed within the first 10 minutes of the movie. |
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ViolenceJean melts down, throwing liquor bottles and other objects at people and walls. A truck gets into an accident, nearly hitting a key character. Tim fights loudly with his girlfriend. |
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Language"F--k" is used liberally, as are "s--t," "asshole," "bitch," and other expletives. |
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Social BehaviorThe family at the heart of the movie is quite dysfunctional: The mother relies too much on her sons, and she also browbeats them and sometimes belittles them (especially when she's upset or drinking). Children lie to their parents to avoid upsetting them; a couple argues about sex (and has lots of it), and the girlfriend routinely tosses out offhand remarks about her body and what she doesn't like about it. On the other hand, the mother clearly cares about her children, too. And though she hits some deep lows, in the end, the family bands together and sins are forgiven -- which seems quite idealistic. |
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CommercialismOne character works at a Midas garage, and the company logo is clearly visible on her uniform. Another is proud of his "Merc" (aka Mercedes Benz). There's also a fair amount of name-dropping, especially of big-name comedians and the clubs where they performed. |
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Drug/Alcohol/TobaccoIn times of both joy and sorrow, the main characters reach for the bottle (and discuss having drunk too much). Afterward, they stagger around, sleep with one another, or fall into deep depressions. Some smoking in clubs. |
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