SPIT Reviewed by GREG KING
Director: Jonathan Teplitzky
Stars: David Wenham, Arlo Green, David Field, Gary Sweet, David Roberts, Helen Thompson, Pallavi Sharda, Bob Franklin, Lewis Fitz-Gerald, Maude Davey, Iain Gardiner, Sofya Gollan.
I didn’t think that 2003’s crime drama Gettin’ Square really needed a sequel. The film was a box office flop when first released, but it found favour through a DVD release and has gained something of a cult following in the years since. So now here we are, twenty years later, with a belated sequel/spin off from that award winning film which puts the spotlight firmly on one of the lesser characters. The key creative personnel behind Gettin’ Sqaure have all returned for the film – writer Christopher Nyst, a lawyer turned screenwriter; cinematographer Garry Phillips; and director Jonathan Teplitzky, as well as several of the original cast.
And David Wenham also returns, reprising his character of Johnny Spitieri, the quirky, disheveled, thong-wearing, mullet-sporting dimwitted buffoonish criminal. At the end of Gettin’ Square his character had disappeared following the heist. According to this new film, Spitieri had been hiding out in London for a couple of decades. After being busted for selling fake Disney merchandise on the streets, he was sent back to Australia. When the film opens, he arrives at the airport on a false passport. But following a frantic chase through the airport he is arrested by the authorities and sent to an immigrant detention centre.
He teaches a group of Middle Eastern detainees his unique brand of colloquial English and also teaches them about mateship and what it means to be an Australian citizen. Amongst them is the unfortunately named Jihad Kalif (New Zealand actor Arlo Green, from M3gan, etc), who becomes a good friend and ally of Johnny’s once the pair are released.
But Johnny’s arrival back in Australia soon causes ripples within the world of law enforcement and the underworld. Vicious drug kingpin Chika Martin (Gary Sweet, cast largely against type) and corrupt cop Arnie DeViers (David Field), want him silenced fearing he can name names. Federal police officer Niall Toole (David Roberts, reprising his role from the original), working with the Public Integrity Commission wants Johnny to testify in court and inform on Martin and DeViers and puts pressure on him.
Teplitzky’s direction is uneven, as is his pacing. A lot of the humour, especially those scenes set in the detention centre, is broad and cringeworthy, often reminiscent of the awful comedy films that we made back in the 70s. Much of the broad typically Aussie humour though misses the mark. Some of the scenes involving the immigrants play to stereotypes and I found them borderline offensive. The standout amongst the immigrants is Green’s Jihad, who brought empathy and a sense of dignity to his performance. However, there is a lack of subtlety and nuance to many of the characters here, especially Field’s foul mouthed crooked cop who comes across as little more than a cliche.
Wenham relishes his role here and is clearly having fun. He brings a weaselly quality to his performance as the street smart and cunning Spitieri. He indulges in plenty of physical comedy with the way he holds and contorts his body, and he also improvises many moments. Spit reprises a comical courtroom scene from the original film, giving Wenham a chance to show his comedic chops.
Also returning is Helen Thompson, reprising her role as Marion Barrington, who has invested her portion of the loot from the heist in a funeral parlour. She has remarried, this time to the shady Crusher-Knobes (comic Bob Franklin, replacing Richard Carter). And Pallavi Sharda registers as Aria Sahni, Spit’s shonky and aggressive lawyer.
Spit was shot on location around Queensland’s Gold Coast a modest $8 million budget, and it looks good.
While I didn’t particularly enjoy Spit, there is probably an audience out there who will lap up what is on offer in this quirky and off beat comic crime caper.
★★
