Despite being their initial and continued source of love, nourishment, shelter and education, parents -- at one point or another -- become nothing more than an embarrassment to their kids, at least in the latter's eyes the parental units becomes nothing short of taboo in their circles.
That usually passes with age and/or maturation, unless, of course, said parents truly are embarrassing in the way they behave and/or present themselves. Take, for instance, working woman Jean Dwight. While her positive points are providing for her young adult kids -- Tim and Mark -- while holding down two jobs, the negative ones include her trying to control every aspect of their lives, a drinking problem (and we're not talking about the kind Robert Hays had in "Airplane"), a larger than life ego, and the fact that she blames her lack of success in her true calling on having had to bear and then raise those boys.
Yet, the biggest embarrassment for Tim -- particularly regarding him trying to establish a romantic relationship with young Jill -- is that his mom, like his divorced father, is an entertainer. And not just any type of entertainer, but a middle-aged, divorcée one who does ribald standup comedy routines that come off like second-rate Vegas acts.
They take place in Sydney, Australia, however, the setting for the offbeat dramedy, "Introducing the Dwights" where veteran actress Brenda Blethyn delivers a terrific performance playing that overbearing mother meets the "I coulda been famous" performer. Offering a pitch-perfect portrayal of such a character who's obviously damaged goods in so many ways, Blethyn gives one of the best, if mostly uncomfortable to watch lead performances I've seen so far this year. It's like observing a flashy train that's poised to derail at any moment, threatening to take its various passengers and anyone else in the way into a spectacular wreck, and Blethyn drives that engine with carefully calculated abandon.
In addition to that family dysfunction plot thrust (where Khan Chittenden plays the embarrassed son, Richard Wilson his mentally challenged brother, and Frankie J. Holden their one-hit wonder, security guard father who's trying to resurrect his country music career), the film is also a coming of age story. The two are obviously connected since Tim's view of women has been shaped by his overbearing, larger than life mom, all of which means he isn't quite sure how to act around Emma Booth's sexually forward character.
The result is a sometimes charming, mildly funny, and occasionally poignant film helmed by director Cherie Nowlan who doesn't always reign in all of that as much as necessary to make the various elements gel into a satisfying and sharp whole. The script -- penned by Keith Thompson -- occasionally wanders a bit too far into the land of goofiness and then strays over into the Sea of Clichés, giving the overall effort something of an awkward aura that might prevent viewers from falling completely for the plot and its characters.
Not surprisingly, but nevertheless still disappointing, the film also suffers from a pat ending that wraps up and resolves everything far too easily and quickly, especially considering all that's built up before it. I can understand the desire for a happy denouement, but the conclusion here feels like a tacked-on afterthought that doesn't exactly jive with what preceded it, particularly concerning how quickly a certain about-face occurs. It's not a horrible fault, but it does do a bit of disservice to the work that comes before it.
Other character motivation also suffers from occasional wishy-washiness. Booth's character is most afflicted by this (loving and then rejecting Tim, tolerating then hating his mom, being sexually assertive and then suffering from body issues, etc.), resulting in it being difficult to get behind the young woman and/or root for Tim to "get the girl." Wilson's portrayal of the mentally challenged young man is also the kind that, in today's politically correct world, might make some squirm in that it rides a very fine line between accuracy and manipulation of the viewer.
Nevertheless, Chittenden creates a likable character, as does Holden as his dad, but this is really Blethyn's show and she gives it all she's got and then some. I suppose it could be argued that the film's awkwardness symbolically parallels that of her character's high wire act, but methinks that might be giving it too much credit. Without her presence and performance (not to mention some rather steamy sex scenes and a terrific soundtrack that mixes blues, country and more), however, this film might have been as forgettable as her character's standup routine. "Introducing the Dwights" rates as a 5 out of 10.
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