The Unusual Suspects

Funny Australian comedy about women attempting to steal a $16 million necklace.

Miranda Otto is a scream as Sara, a major Internet influencer who has gone through all her family money. She is desperate to sell to an American company; however, her ex-boyfriend, a horrendous artist, is about to ruin that.

Sara's maid is Evie (Aina Dumlao), who left her daughter behind in the Phillipines in the hope of making enough money to return home, get away from her husband, and move to a new home with her daughter.

Sara can no longer pay her.

Evie's friend Amy works for the well-known Roxanne Waters (Michele Vergara Moore) and has had her pension stolen due to Roxanne's husband's ponzi scheme. Both Amy and Roxanne want out.

Roxanne receives the necklace from her husband which actually belongs to his mother from hell. The women decide to steal it, setting up an elaborate plan that involves a carnival, a rock band, a drill, and a mannequin.

Very enjoyable. The cast is terrific.

SBS has put together some really big names of Australia TV and film for this crime heist comedy that adds a layer to the story that makes it stand out from the many tv shows already in this space. They also avoided diving too deep into some of the sub themes like Asian Australians who work to send money to their overseas home, Wealthy vs working class but they allow these to exist as context to the plot.

I was so excited to watch this, I love Miranda Otto and I want to support an all female lead but this is not great and I have no idea how it received so many 10 star ratings, could it be friends of the the crew/cast/network trying to bump the score?

Let's start with the Filipino stereotypes. Between the gold digging Filipino wife and the Filipino servants (mind you, one is wearing an actual uniform) this feels borderline racist. Don't even get me started on the poor little rich girl who is sent from Philippines to work as a cleaner. Miranda Ottos character is so overacted at times it pains me to watch her. Cue the evil mother in law, the philandering husbands...

The story has more plot holes than Swiss cheese, the viewer this needs to be as drunk as Sara to overlook them.

This wasn't a drama, this wasn't dark enough to be a noir, this wasn't remotely funny, so what genre was this? I think it could have swung a little more in any of those directions and achieved a far greater story.

There were some rather well placed flashback scenes but overall 80% of the show I found almost too cringe worthy to watch.

When I glanced at the promo picture I thought this was a remake of the fantastic The Usual Suspects. If you've ever seen The Hustle, you know what a hideous idea that would be. But this little Aussie gem, now available on Hulu, is a lot of fun. It bounces around like crazy with lots of twists and turns. Recommended!

Loved it. Fun, yet with enough depth and twists. Loved that all the main characters were women and the men supporting cast. Thankyou for this snapshot into the lives of Phillipino domestic workers in the wealthy Australian suburbs.