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PLEASE NOTE: Michael D's is currently in READ ONLY MODE. Anything submitted will simply not be written to the database.
Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
Kenny (2006)

Kenny (2006)

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Released 4-Dec-2006

Cover Art

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Details At A Glance

General Extras
Category Comedy Main Menu Audio & Animation
Audio Commentary-Clayton Jacobson With Kenny
Deleted Scenes
Theatrical Trailer
Trailer-The Three Burials Of Melquiades Estrada, 10 Canoes,
Trailer-Three Dollars, Look Both Ways
Trailer-The Mysterious Geographic Explorations Of Jasper Morello
Trailer-My Brilliant Career, The Wild Parrots Of Telegraph Hill
Rating Rated M
Year Of Production 2006
Running Time 99:27 (Case: 97)
RSDL / Flipper RSDL (46:10) Cast & Crew
Start Up Menu
Region Coding 4 Directed By Clayton Jacobson
Studio
Distributor
Madman
Madman Entertainment
Starring Clayton Jacobson
Shane Jacobson
Bernard Derriman
Ronald Jacobson
Shane Jacobson
David Michôd
Simon Scott
Eve von Bibra
Damian Walshe-Howling
Case Amaray-Transparent-Secure Clip
RPI $29.95 Music None Given


Video Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame None English Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s)
English Dolby Digital 5.1 (448Kb/s)
English Audio Commentary Dolby Digital 2.0 (224Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio 1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
16x9 Enhanced
Video Format 576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio 1.78:1 Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures No
Subtitles English Smoking Yes
Annoying Product Placement No
Action In or After Credits Yes

NOTE: The Profanity Filter is ON. Turn it off here.

Plot Synopsis

   

'None are less visible than those we decide not to see.'

    Isn't it great to see an independent Aussie film come out of nowhere and rack up great box office and then follow it up by winning an AFI award for best actor as this film has just done? Now to take Kenny to the world!

    When I first heard about this film, via an advertising brochure in a previous review disc from Madman, I thought it would be just a very scatalogical comedy and it would be easy to choose not to see this film if that's what you thought it was. However, there is much more to this film than poo jokes. This is a surprisingly touching and emotional portrayal of a man who has pride in himself and what he does despite being ignored, vilified or insulted by all those around him. It's also a very funny mockumentary, which like the best mockumentaries (such as those by Christopher Guest) has great affection for those it pokes fun at.

    The film follows the life of a plumber, Kenny Smyth (Shane Jacobsen) who works for a corporate bathroom rentals company, Splashdown. They provide portable bathrooms for major events such as the Melbourne Cup, motor racing and festivals. His job involves delivering the units, keeping them clean and working during the event, getting rid of the waste and preparing the units for the next event. This would seem from the outside to be a truly horrible job, however, his pride and sense of humour turn it into a labour of love. We follow him day to day to different jobs and see the treatment he is dished out by customers, the public and even his family (with the exception of his son, played by Jacobsen's own son). As the film develops his pride and loyalty result in him being given opportunities in his job which result in personal opportunities.

    Technically, this film was done using mostly handheld camera work on digital video but this adds to the believeability of the premise. Interestingly, the film was sponsored by the actual Splashdown company who Shane Jacobsen worked for at the time the film was made. It was directed by his brother, Clayton Jacobsen who also appears in the film. It also features their father in real life as their father in the film. The dialogue is fantastic and there are some great quotables, however, I decided to use the quote above rather than the great one liners as to my mind it really sums up what this film is all about. Shane Jacobsen is marvelous as Kenny, very deserving of his AFI award.

    This is a marvelous and surprising Australian film, probably the best Aussie comedy since The Castle. Highly Recommended.

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Transfer Quality

Video

    The video quality is very good and only really limited by its source, rather than the transfer.

    The feature is presented in a 1.78:1 aspect ratio, 16x9 enhanced, which is the original aspect ratio.

    The picture was quite sharp and clear with no real issues in this regard. There was no evidence of low level noise. There were a few spots of light grain such as at 8:00 in the background. Shadow detail was also very good.

    The colour was excellent with no issues to report.

    The only noticeable artefact was some minor aliasing such as at 4:20, 8:35 on a curtain and 19:36 on a door. These may have been in the source.

    There are subtitles in English which are clear and easy to read. They are in yellow.

    The layer change occurs at  46:10 in a black frame, which is a good choice.
    

Video Ratings Summary
Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio quality is very good.

    This DVD contains two options, a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack encoded at 448 Kb/s and an English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo soundtrack encoded at 224 Kb/s. The 2.0 is the default.

    Dialogue was mostly clear and easy to understand and there was no problem with audio sync. Kenny's speech impediment sometimes made his dialogue a little difficult to grasp first time.

    The score of this movie is by Richard Pleasance and it does a fine job in a supporting capacity. It's never really front of mind.

    The surround speakers were used quite a lot for directional effects which sometimes were a little too obvious and a bit over the top. Examples include truck noises, planes and cars. You certainly knew your surround speakers were there.

     The subwoofer was also used extensively to add bass to explosions and trucks. Not as overdone as the surrounds.

Audio Ratings Summary
Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Extras

   

Menu

    The menu is well done and includes dialogue from the movie, scenes and an intro. Good stuff.

Deleted Scenes (15:17)

    Eleven deleted scenes are included in total which are mostly amusing and well worth seeing. Some are extended versions of things in the film. They are presented in non-16x9 enhanced widescreen.

Commentary - Clayton Jacobsen & Kenny

    This commentary continues the joke with Shane Jacobsen staying in character. This means the commentary is really funny but doesn't really get behind the premise of the film. It would have been nice to have both style of commentary from the brothers. There is lots of discussion about poo plus some poking fun at commentaries generally. If you want to learn more names for poo, you've come to the right place. Good stuff.

Theatrical Trailer (1:44)

    Funny trailer.

Booklet

    A 16 page booklet entitled the Kenny Toilet Companion Quote Book is included. It is very amusing and a great addition to the disc.

Madman Propaganda

    Six film trailers are included plus an ad for the Kenny action figure.

R4 vs R1

NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.

    This movie is only currently available in Region 4.

Summary

    The best Aussie comedy since The Castle .

    The video quality is very good.

    The audio quality is very good.

    A decent collection of extras are included.

Ratings (out of 5)

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

© Daniel Bruce (Do you need a bio break?)
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Review Equipment
DVDPioneer DV667A DVD-V DVD-A SACD, using Component output
DisplaySony FD Trinitron Wega KV-AR34M36 80cm. Calibrated with Digital Video Essentials (PAL). This display device is 16x9 capable. This display device has a maximum native resolution of 576i (PAL)/480i (NTSC).
Audio DecoderBuilt in to amplifier/receiver. Calibrated with Video Essentials.
AmplificationPioneer VSX-511
SpeakersMonitor Audio Bronze 2 (Front), Bronze Centre & Bronze FX (Rears) + Yamaha YST SW90 subwoofer

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