2.5 stars (out of 5)
Aussie funster Josh Lawson’s first shot at writing and directing a feature is a multi-character study of sex, relationships and fetishes sorely let down by irritating characters, improbable detail and the standard ‘ooh, aren’t we being soooooo daring?!?’ undercurrent.
With couples and their kinks introduced by smarmy subtitles, we meet: Paul (Lawson) and Maeve (Bojana Novakovic), who struggle to fulfill her desire to be, ahem, raped; Evie (Kate Mulvany) and Dan (Damon Herriman), who engage in strained but elaborate gags about role playing; Phil (Alan Dukes) and Maureen (Lisa McCune), where it’s all about power (or powerlessness); and Rowena (Kate Box) and Richard (Patrick Brammall), who annoy the Hell out of us as she lies about her secret sexual excitement. We’re also asked to laugh at Steve (Kym Gyngell), who’s required by law to say hello to all his new neighbours, and then, finally, there’s Monica (Erin James in her first film role), who appears in the final, almost unbroken thread here. She works as a translator for the deaf and, via a video link with Sam (TJ Power), is asked to call a sex worker, and while this feels like the short film that inspired the whole silly feature (and probably was), it’s still the key reason to sit through the rest of this irksome pic.
Smug and infuriating, this is notable for James and Power’s chemistry, for the cheesy attempts by Lawson to make this as American and ‘shocking’ as possible, and for demonstrating once again that rape is never, ever funny.
I Wake Up Screening 