Review of Muriel's Wedding (1994) by Rick C — 29 Jul 2017

Seen this many times over the years and always loved it. This was the perfect role for Toni Collette. I don't think anyone else could have played the part so well.

I was in my 20's when I first saw this and I related to Muriel so much with her self loathing and wanting to be more than she was (not so much the Abba and wedding obsession). The bitchy girl group were familiar and the hot air father. Think we've all met people like those characters. I can remember shedding a few tears in the cinema when I first saw it at a section where Muriel is especially down on herself.

What I didn't quite get at the time was how tragic her mother was. Rewatching in my 40's, her character really stood out this time around. The despair and hopelessness of her life. Because she plays it understated and the other characters were larger, I missed it the first five or so times I saw it. Of course I always thought Bill was a pig and Diedre was... well, pretty much suited to him, honestly, and I always felt a bit sorry for poor Betty... but I didn't appreciate how checked out that poor woman actually was.

This movie is quite an achievement. It's definitely a comedy, but it has so much else going on in it too. Really one of the better Australian movies.