A MAN'S GOTTA DO
Directed & Written by: Chris Kennedy.
Produced by: John Winter.
Director of Photography: Kim Batterham.
Edited by: Emma Hay.
Music by: Peter Best.
Released by: Cinema 4.
Country of Origin: Australia. 94 min. Not Rated.
With: John Howard, Rebecca Firth, Alyssa McClelland & Gyton Grantley.

Eddy, a middle-aged, belly-bulging father and husband, is not particularly in touch, literally or figuratively, with his female side. He is barely able to converse with his daughter, smells of his job as a fisherman, and moonlights as a hit man debt collector. And with a sexually frustrated wife and a daughter increasingly depressed by the disappearance of her fiancé, Eddy's role as the protective head of his home is under siege.

Dominic (Gyton Grantley), a young and clumsy, but sincere co-worker has the simplicity of insight to suggest to Eddy he should get to know his daughter better. So Eddy persuades Dominic to trawl inside his daughter Chantelle's diary for any information that may help him to reconnect with her and get her out of her doldrums. Although they recognize their action as subterfuge, getting the job done is the goal, and in Eddy's philosophy, "A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do." However, while Eddy gets the inside scoop on his daughter's secrets, the knowing Chantelle uses a little bait and tackle of her own. The more the men discover, the more they wish they didn't know.

Portraying Eddy with jovial gruffness, John Howard nicely blends a rough exterior with his inner teddy-bear, but his thick accent makes it difficult, at times, to understand what he is saying. Although the title suggests that the film will focus mostly on Eddy, it is Alyssa McClelland as Chantelle who also shines, exuding a tender defiance perfect for her character. The supporting roles are also well-played.

Although the film is charming, the screenplay and direction don't always mine the comic prospects of the premise, often making character interactions feel like one-liner vignettes. This adds a quirkiness that works for the story, but makes the overall humor less realized than if the conflicts were explored more fully. That said, the film's warm-heartedness comes through, and though you know predictably that everything will be set right in the end, it remains appealing nevertheless. Max Rennix, actor & writer based in New York
May 6, 2005