Me Myself & I

Pamela Drury (Rachel Griffiths) should be a happy woman. She's smart, successful, and living a trendy inner-city lifestyle. But while she's got it all as far as her chosen path is concerned, she's starting to worry whether she's chosen the wrong path. Marriage, children, the love of Mr Right; things she once scorned are all starting to look pretty good to her now. Then, thanks to a chance encounter with herself - or at least, the version of her who did marry Mr Right, AKA Robert (David Roberts) - she gets to find out the colour of the grass on the fence's other side. And it's not as green as she thought...

The single and desperate version of Pamela is a little too cliched for Griffiths to really shine, but once her character forced to start struggling with an instant family she - and the film - start firing on all cylinders. This is the kind of film that could easily slip into preachiness, but unlike the very similar Sliding Doors, this keeps both lifestyles balanced (if there's a message, it's that being married is just as crap as being single), and even when tackling suicide attempts and ex-marital affairs it keeps a light and humorous touch. It's hard not to like a film that gives prominent product placement to a box of 'Home Brand' breakfast cereal, and though the humour level's set to smile rather than thigh-slapping, there's enough warmth in Griffith's performance to stop audiences from sitting through Me Myself & I wondering what if they'd decided to do something else with their time.

Anthony Morris (this review appeared in Forte)

One Perfect Day

When his sister dies from a drug overdose, arty composer Tommy Matisse (Dan Spielman) returns to Melbourne from conducting bag lady operas in London. Once home he fights with his girlfriend (Leeanna Walsman), gives up classical music to become a DJ, and faces off against an evil drug dealer (Andrew Howard) - who is now molesting Tommy's drug-addled now-former girlfriend and who wants to get into the music industry with him. If you've been waiting for a movie that feels like some doped-up teenager is babbling to you about some amazing night they had then wait no longer, because this hysterically over-the-top film is either amazingly bad or somewhat compelling depending on how prepared you are to laugh at the bad acting, dodgy plot, wacky visuals and countless weird moments (did we need to see the drug lord shave his chest?). Anti-drugs (it pretends it isn't, but when drugs kill two main characters you kinda get the message) but pro the mystical magical powers of recording ambient sounds and turning them into lame dance tracks, this is the kind of film that has to be seen to be believed - but probably shouldn't.

Anthony Morris (this review appeared in Forte)