reiher@ucla-cs.UUCP (08/30/85)
I just saw an incredibly strange movie on cable: "Barry McKenzie Holds
His Own". Picture a Monty Python movie done by Australians, but without
the characteristic Python good taste and restraint. That's "Barry McKenzie
Holds His Own". Apparently a sequel to an earlier movie about the same
character, it concerns a naive, no, stupid, xenophobic, beer guzzling, crude
Australian named Barry McKenzie who is on a tour of Europe with his aunt
(played, in the best tradition of low British comedy, by a man in drag). The
aunt is kidnapped by a band of Communist vampires who mistake her for Queen
Elizabeth, and Barry, his priggish twin brother, and a bunch of Australian
buddies (as well as Four-Eyes, the affable Australian cultural minister to
Europe) must parachute into Transylvania to save her in a daring commando
raid, armed only with sharpened stakes and vast quantities of Australian
beer.
This film must be seen to be believed. It cheerfully insults just about
everyone. (I don't remember any insults directed at Americans, but they
probably just slipped by under the thick Australian accents.) It's a true
artifact of Australian culture, with the saving grace that it is just as
happy insulting Australians as anyone else. If one is not offended by at
least some of it, one is probably too thick skinned. A sample exchange,
between an Australian and an Englishman:
Englishman: Is it true that all Australians are pooftas?
Australian: No, we just say that to get Pommeys to immigrate.
Earlier, an Englishman is faced by a three question quiz which he must
pass before being allowed to immigrate to Australia. The third question
is, "What country is the asshole of the world?", the answer, of course,
being "England". The film also insults the French, women, homosexuals,
liberals, Chinese, Indians, the clergy, and policemen, plus many other
groups I lost track of in the flurry.
One of the most interesting things about it is the director: Bruce
Beresford, who has since gone on to much different things, like
"Breaker Morant", "Tender Mercies", and "The Getting of Wisdom". He
doesn't direct this film like he's a bit embarressed. Rather, it looks
like he had a fine old time. There's also an interesting performance
by Donald Pleasance as Count Plasma, the head vampire. Pleasance seems
to be doing a pretty good Roman Polanski imitation.
Recommended for those who recover easily from outrage and shock. Not all
of it's funny, but enough is, particularly two raunchy songs sung by
McKenzie and his pals. Cable is your best bet to see it, and videocassette
next best.
--
Peter Reiher
reiher@LOCUS.UCLA.EDU
{...ihnp4,ucbvax,sdcrdcf}!ucla-cs!reiherlcliffor@bbncca.ARPA (Laura Frank Clifford) (09/05/85)
Barry McKenzie sounds like an Australian version of Bob and Doug, those loveable Canadian hozers. Is there a connection, I wonder?
peter@graffiti.UUCP (Peter da Silva) (09/17/85)
> Barry McKenzie sounds like an Australian version of Bob and Doug, those > loveable Canadian hozers. Is there a connection, I wonder? Barry is nothing like the McKenzies of Canada. Would they take a technicolor yawn over the side of the Eiffel Tower? He's more Monty-Python-esque than anything.