Best movie ever!

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

I saw a previous reviewer state that you will like it if you can relate to it, which is entirely true and some others have described Chris Lilley as a writing mastermind. Surely if he were a mastermind in writing he would be able to write a comedy that could be about a certain culture, yet was still accessible to outsiders. I wouldn't even describe this as a comedy because there is nothing to laugh about, not one moment of jest worthy of laughter, absolutely no humour in this sad excuse for a show. It comes across as some weakly written script that was half finished and required the actors to fill in the rest with mundane, clueless ad-lib. Johan, as stated is a somewhat unruly school kid who gets into fights and situations, turns over desks, argues, shouts and all done the most humourless way. To summarise what this programme is like, go to a school and hang around with a load of teenage boys at lunchtime and see if you find they're humour funny and make sure you don't get arrested too. In conclusion, the only way you will relate to this is if you are still at school.

Another reviewer here put it very well: Summer Heights High was balanced and engaging, but when Chris Lilley ventures off with single characters, the stories and character development falter.Jonah is not an unrealistic character; he is that hyper, intensely irritating, in-the-name-of-all-that's-holy-STFU teenager that we've all seen somewhere, even if only in passing. He's pure, concentrated annoyance, desperate for any kind of attention or reaction. And I give Chris Lilley full points for being able to recreate that. But unless you're a social worker or a teacher specializing in behavior disorders, do you really want to spend time with that kid, even from the safety of your living room? Seriously, when the teacher breaks a chair against the wall or Jonah's father chases him across a bowling alley with a steady stream of obscenities and death threats, you understand completely.And that's probably Lilley's point: How do you deal with someone so profoundly and unrelentingly obnoxious, but who is, after all, still a kid? I like that there are no Very Special Episodes (at least not so far) in which Jonah learns his lesson and vows to do better. Instead, we're only given brief glimpses of his possible humanity, e.g., his love for his younger brother or his semi-endearing delusions regarding his dance skills. But while it's more realistic for Jonah to carry on with little forward movement, the lack of development does mean that the show is repetitive and circular.

Saw the entry on the Dish program guide the other night. I'd been to Tonga a few years back, so I thought it might be interesting to see a bit more of their culture. Didn't realize it was a mockumentary.It wasn't offensive, or shocking, or whatever they were trying to go for. Just stupid. No coherence to what was going on. Didn't feel as if there was anything authentic about the performance. Even 14 year old boys can come up with more clever dick jokes than were given here.As jp said above, maybe it just doesn't translate well to America, and it's a riot for those in Australia. I remember thinking afterward that might've been the worst half-hour of television I'd ever witnessed.

I think out of all of his work now Chris has shown that his strength is in character and situations but not in story. This is the case again with Jonah, although I do think it was better than the J'Amie series.The problem is it's kind of like the same joke over and over again - and it just wears off. I thought this series started a bit slowly then started to get good with the dance competition and the time in juvenile detention but then failed to fully deliver.The problem is the character never really got his come-uppance he doesn't grow or change enough to make him interesting or compelling enough to watch over 2 series. Jonah either needed to get the crap beaten out of him so he learnt some humility, or he needed to have something he really valued destroyed by his own actions and then come to realise it himself - and learn and grow from that.But none of this happens - and once we get the shock and the humour and everything to do with the character and style of the show it just wears thin. I found J'Amie very similar - if she had falsely accused someone of molesting her and all of that came to ahead and she was brought to account by it imagine how good that series could have been - rather than what we got.Chris is very talented and very insightful and observant - and brave - but I really think he needs to understand story more, and how it works and what it does to character and the audience - and why - in order to get the most out of what he is trying to do.