Goddess

The trailer they made for this movie is a total winner. If only the movie lived up to that. It just did not translate as funny as the trailer. Still it was cute. The lead actress has a great voice. But the movie really is mostly singing with some story wedged in. It is shot beautifully. Everyone looks good. The countryside looks lovely. The idea is so good I wish it would of been a bit more of a comedy movie with some songs. But worth a watch online or DVD. I just did not realize this is really a musical. It feels like a Broadway show they translated to a movie. It is a cheerful upbeat movie that kids might like too.

What a great movie. I'm still singing the songs and I'm recommending it to all my friends. Goddess is funny, heartwarming and a pleasure to watch. The choice of the director (Mark Lamprell) to cast Laura Michelle Kelly and Ronan Keating as a young UK family transported into a new community in a new country is inspired. They simply "click" on screen and exude warmth. The director's choice of Magda is equally inspired. She is nothing short of a knockout.

The musical numbers are very catchy and expertly choreographed. This is the movie Australians have been asking for for years. All too often critics have complained that Australian movies take themselves far too seriously. Not so Goddess. No bleak navel gazing happening here. Goddess is quirky and fun from beginning to end.

Give yourselves a treat over the Easter break. Go and see Goddess and have great time.

Let's start with the good. The main actress sings well and there's plenty of colour and rhythm with all the dance routines. (She can't lip sync to save her life, but she's a musical theatre actress not a popstar, so it's probably to her credit). Generally it's solidly acted by all the cast.

The bad: the grotesque "moral" of this story. Basically you can't have a glittering career if you're a mother. Despite the fact that your husband is working away from home for months on end enjoying his glittering career, and that there would be no issue whatsoever with taking two pre-school age kids to the US with a nanny for a couple of months: no, your husband will go off with someone else, so you must go back to the remote rural town in Tasmania you've inexplicably chosen to reside in, put your rubber gloves on, and be a small town stay-at-home mom.

I watched with increasing heart-sinking as I saw the ending of this approaching, knowing exactly where it was going, and I hated it every bit as much as the similarly dismal ending of View from the Top (2003).

The first time I saw this when it was released, I was in a different head space and I absolutely adored this little film.

Twelve years later it felt overcrowded.

Tasmania was photographed beautifully, I like the whales, I liked all the songs, I liked the singers and I liked the actors. But something doesn't sit right.

I think it was just all too much, somehow. Perhaps I'm not a musical fan. I still haven't watched Mumma Mia because I know I will despise all that over singing and noise.

I like the story plot. It wasn't quite comedy but more romance, which was fairly cliche. Maybe that's the problem. This movie was delightful but also one giant cliche. What a shame. It was otherwise potentially a 10.

I loved this film. I don't generally do musicals, but I do tend to like anything that is different from a lot of the mainstream bilge pumped out by Hollywood. I'm a big fan of Australian cinema precisely because it produces quirky, charming films like this. I agree it's unlikely to ever win any Oscars, but that is possibly part of its appeal. The "stars" are not A-list but who cares. Like champagne, the film is light and frothy and lacking in substance but, if you accept it for what it is, it's still thoroughly enjoyable. I saw this film on an international airline, so hopefully its gradually picking up a worldwide fan base and rightly so. Be proud Australia - your films are much better than you give them credit for!