In 1996, Joanna Weinberg turned her experiences as a stay at home mother into a hit one-woman show. Newly arrived in Australia from South Africa, isolated by her husband’s demanding work schedule, and the primary carer for two young children, she had sacrificed her own career for her domestic duties; musical Sink Songs provided a distraction from her routine, and a cathartic outlet for her frustrations. The show’s success consequently sparked a feature film adaptation years in the making: Goddess.
Within the film, the fictional character of Elspeth Dickens (Laura Michelle Kelly, an Olivier Award winner for Mary Poppins) is Weinberg’s screen surrogate, a British native now based in Tasmania. Though supportive of her husband James’ (singer Ronan Keating) whale saving endeavours, Elspeth’s days are filled with the troublesome exploits of twin two-year-olds; adult interaction is lacking. Contact with James is just as scarce, the webcam he bought for her rendered useless by his inability to obtain a signal on the high seas. Unable to connect with her husband, she opens her webstream to the world instead, broadcasting pithy tunes sung from her kitchen.
Just as each song about parenthood and married life helps Elspeth escape her unhappiness, Goddess is pure wish-fulfilment for mothers and housewives everywhere. Just as the heroine eschews domesticity when a corporate advertising executive (Magda Szubanski, Kath & Kimderella) comes calling with promises of fame and fortune, the audience is offered the opportunity to fantasise about their own plights similarly improving, seeing their daydreams transferred onto the screen in musical form.
Sadly, a sense of drama is absent in writer/director Mark Lamprell’s (My Mother Frank) feature, co-written with Weinberg. The stakes remain low in Elspeth’s quest to find fulfilment, with the ‘woman who wants it all’ storyline too familiar, and the repercussions of her dreams too clumsily executed. Her melodic missives, whilst catchy and well-choreographed, fail to engage even whilst they entertain. Energy may radiate from the competently-crafted effort, and a feel-good atmosphere too, but missing is a sustained emotional refrain.
Casting is the film’s masterstroke: Kelly, Szubanski and even Keating exude charm. While Szubanski and her offsider Hugo Johnstone-Burt (TV’s Home and Away) provide competent comic relief, Keating is affable in his limited screen time, with Kelly – understandably – the star of the show. In the hands of a less talented performer, Elspeth may have been overshadowed by the songs; embodied by Kelly, she shines. Goddess is improved by her efforts, adding a pleasant sheen to an otherwise pedestrian offering.
Rating: 2 ½ stars out of 5
Goddess
Australia, 2013, 104 min
In cinemas March 14
Distributor: Roadshow
Rated PG
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