Review of Muriel's Wedding (1994) by Spencer S — 15 Jun 2011

A rocking chick flick with bouts of self-esteem issues, this Australian comedy features the original talents of Toni Colette and Rachel Griffiths. Colette's character of Muriel is not entirely original, as the derivation is of an awkward girl with fantasies of a fulfilled life alongside a man, depressed because she isn't the Barbie doll society calls her to be.

Still, with an ABBA obsession and a penchant for getting into trouble with the police, Muriel is portrayed as a kooky and quirky aside to the usual dark portrayals that lead to disaster. Griffiths is already a self-fulfilled person, sex inclined and not dubious to the tall tales Muriel spins as she reinvents herself as Mariel, living in Sydney and burning bridges to her hometown of Porpoise Spit and the family that not only raised her, but ends up duped in her quest to find herself.

The film grows dark, Muriel's family turning into a conflicted bunch on the brink of eruption, her wish fulfillment morphing into a life of joyless solitude, without intimacy or friendship. Though very bland on premise and plot, Muriel stills keeps some laughs rolling as well as the punches.