Ben Mendelsohn, Barry Otto, Toni Collette

Louis is a young Sydney amateur theater director at his first experience: he is offered a job with a Governmental program for the rehabilitation of mentally ill patients in a Sydney institution for me...( read more  read more... )ntally ill. His project is overrun by one of the patients Roy who wants to put on stage Cosi Fan Tutte (Mozart). None of the patients in the cast is able to sing and none of them knowsItalian which is the language of the libretto. Through a lot of difficulties Louis and his cast develop a deep understanding. The play smartly adapted for the unusual cast is finally produced: lots of unforeseen situations solved 'a la crazy way'but indeed brilliantly. Great success and sad farewell of the director from his cast.

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67% liked it

1,800 ratings

R, 1 hr. 40 min.

Directed by: Mark Joffe

Release Date: April 11, 1997

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DVD Release Date: May 6, 2003

Stats: 102 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (102)


  • April 11, 2008
    The basic premise of staging Mozart's comic opera `Cosi Fan Tutte' in a mental institution would seem like a recipe for disaster, but here it is also used as an opportunity to lightly explore some aspects of the human condition. An inexperienced but aspirational, if not exactly t...( read more)alented, director (Lewis) is given the task of putting on a variety show for the hospital's aloof administrator (Tony Llewellyn-Jones; Picnic at Hanging Rock), his like-wise ?caring' colleagues (excepting Colin Friels as the compassionate Errol) and the minister for health. Ben Mendelsohn (The Year My Voice Broke) in his mainly low-key performance as Lewis is a superb foil to the rest of the manic protagonists. An overwrought Barry Otto (Strictly Ballroom & Lilian's Story) is Roy with his rather grandiose visions who commandeers this project and coerces Lewis into rebelling against his directive, to stage the opera instead. Mark Joffe's Australian bawdy and riotous romp is played unashamedly for laughs, very much in the style of `Strictly Ballroom' and `Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert', rather than `One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest', the benchmark for films of psychiatric patients finding themselves, lacking its depths of pathos and tragedy. In fact all the various psychoses are portrayed for their potential humour and the extremeness of the asylum residents' conditions are somehow subdued, presumably by medication, to enable them to work together. The `clients' backgrounds are sketchily drawn and we are not allowed to dwell for too long on how damaged so many people become by the behaviour of others towards them. An offensive pyromaniac (David Wenham) tells us how he tortured cats and in a rare serious moment, suicidally depressed Ruth (Pamela Rabe; Sirens) is seen toying with slashing her wrists (we are told the difference between the cry for help and the sure-fire method), but the film swiftly diverts our attention. The central issue of the opera regarding double standards by men towards women's fidelity is touched upon, but not developed satisfyingly, with the examination of Lewis' own relationship and his attraction to the talented member of his cast, Julie, a recovering junkie. Meanwhile Lewis' parasitic `mate', Nick (Aden Young), his ill-advised inspiration as a director, is seen to be a pretentious buffoon with half-baked theories such as `the crucial key is to find out what sort of animal the actor is', and unsuccessfully tries to make a cuckold of him. If you are able to ignore the implausibility of it all, and to see a group of socially challenged individuals overcoming some of their problems to step out of themselves, if only for a brief moment on the stage, then you may still find your spirit uplifted and enjoy this as I did.
  • November 16, 2006
    A really heartfelt film with a lot of really strong performances and some really good writing. It has its weaker acting, too, and contains its fair share of cliches, but it's still a really enjoyable movie that hits a lot of themes and spectrums.
  • July 7, 2008
    Pretty funny.
  • November 21, 2009
    well umn just seen this movie 4 the 1st time n think that this is a good movie 2 watch....its got a good cast of actors/actressess throughout this movie....i think that paul chubb, pamela rabe, jacki weaver, rachel griffiths, aden young, colin friels, toni collette, ben mendasoh...( read more)n, barry otto play good roles/parts thorughout this movie.......i think that the director of this comedy/drama movie had done a good job of directing this movie because you never know what 2 expect throughout this movie....i think that this is a good comedy movie 2 watch with a good cast throughout this movie
  • November 11, 2009
    Light look at mental illness, infidelity, love, and the mental instability of the performaning arts.
  • October 20, 2008
    This is a really good australian film. David Wenham's performance is a stand out.
  • September 15, 2008
    ha i had to watch it for drama and it was actually quite good.
  • September 12, 2008
    GOOD MOVIE WORTH WATCHING
  • March 20, 2008
    This is a great flic. Collette is as good as she always is and the rest of the cast do a great job too.
    Great stuff.
  • October 24, 2007
    Insane people are so entertaining!

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