Howzat! Kerry Packer's War

Well crafted documentary with murder mystery deceit and colourful pajamas

HOWZAT! recounts the growth and development of World Series Cricket, helmed by Kerry Packer (Lachy Hulme), who signed up over fifty of the world's best players to play a series of "Super-Tests" in opposition to the established version of the game. Through his efforts the pay and conditions of most Test cricketers were radically improved; his other innovations - accepted as standard today - included colored clothing, white balls and day/night one-day matches. This is a highly entertaining, if somewhat romanticized version of events: Hulme's Packer is an obsessive, with absolutely no manners whatsoever, whose dedication to the cause remains admirable nonetheless. The Australian cricket team are portrayed as co-conspirators, while Richie Benaud (Peter Houghton) becomes Packer's willing ally, even though reduced to silence during one of the magnate's spectacular tirades. Following the BODYLINE series of the Eighties, the British are portrayed as supercilious and old- fashioned - especially the cricket administrators of the MCC, and the lawyers charged with defending Packer's cause. On the other hand England captain Tony Greig (Alexander England), becomes an enthusiastic and articulate supporter - perhaps because he is not British but South African. While the story keeps close to the historical facts, it nonetheless shows how post-colonial attitudes still pervade the Australian psyche - at least in terms of its media products.

What a pity that Kerry Packer was such an unlikeable bloke. He had the money to be able to step on anyone's toes to make a buck, and the bottom line of this show is that he does it again - doesn't matter who or how many are in the way. Look at the way he humiliates his staff - fact or fiction? There is enough evidence around to know it was fact, but that was Kerry Packer all over - just that this time it was cricket.

What is good about the show is that it gave a chance to many younger Aussie actors - too often we see the same old faces time and again. It was refreshing to watch some other actors all doing a decent job. I am sure many watched to see how their old cricket heroes appeared in this series. And I don't think anyone would have been disappointed. The producers really did spend time and money to groom appearances.

It's just a pity that Packer's obnoxiousness keeps getting in the way.

A TV mini-series on the advent of World Series Cricket, the brainchild of media mogul Kerry Packer. Totally revolutionised cricket and dragged cricket into the professional era.

Good mini-series. Not brilliant: some of the cricket was inaccurate (eg Clive Lloyd batting right-handed). Still, gave a good history and re-enactment of cricket's greatest revolution.

I'm a big cricket fan and my love for the game commenced in the early 70's just before the time-line of this dramatisation of the difficult birth of Kerry Packer's World Series Cricket venture, who sought to weaken the autocratic powers of the National Cricket Boards of the day and share more of the profits with the actual players themselves. Naturally, I'm sure that Packer was also in it for the bucks himself, although in this rather one-sided production, outside of his frequent volcanic temper eruptions, he's portrayed in almost a patrician light, bonding with his players, sympathising with the fans and above all loving the game itself.

To give full vent to his megalomaniac side, the perfect Australian loudmouth stereotype, two characters are invented pretty much for Packer to scream at and humiliate, firstly a put-upon secretary and the second a hard-pressed finance director, both of whom he almost breaks but who both show loyalty above and beyond the call of duty (although heaven only knows why) sticking with him until finally WSC takes off.

The producers did a reasonably good job selecting actors who looked like their well-known sporting counterparts apart from the guy who looked so unlike svelte commentator Richie Benaud that every scene he was in he was called by name so you knew who you were watching. Loche Muir in the title role gives a powerhouse performance counterbalanced by Abe Forsythe as his quieter baby-faced partner, comedian Paul Hogan's sidekick while the actors playing the aforementioned P.A. Rosie and Finance Director Dave also perform well.

The cricket match recreations are as good as could be expected, not great in other words and woven not exactly seamlessly into the real sporting action used as an occasional backdrop, but the sport itself is only the background to Packer's struggle against the establishment, which despite the man at times coming across as one of the most obnoxious people imaginable, you still end up wanting him to win through.

Packer really was responsible for seismic changes in cricket, even if not all the ideas were his in the first place. These included country-coded coloured outfits for the players (the salmon pink West Indies rig-out didn't last long!), day-night cricket, the importance of one-day cricket, multi-camera angles (ensuring the action was always front-on) and many others. From it we can see the genesis of the IPL, the Cricket World Cup, power-plays and many more innovations almost taken for granted nowadays. Above all else he made cricket into the multi-million pound sport it is today.

This big-boned drama on his life and times might offend some but I was thoroughly entertained right down to the last wicket.