Director: Gracie Otto
Starring: Krew Boylan, Daniel Webber, Rose Byrne, Celeste Barber, Bobby Cannavale, Thomas Campbell, Todd Lasance, Jean Kittson, Wayne Blair, Tony Barry, Jack Thompson, Danii Minogue, Nell Campbell
Distributor: Roadshow
Runtime: 94 mins. Reviewed in Dec 2022
Reviewer: Fr Peter Malone msc

| |

Rating notes: Crude humour, sex, nudity and coarse language

A realtor pursues a new career as a Dolly Parton impersonator, but is she in danger of losing her own personality?

No, not communist propaganda. Rather, something of the opposite – a venture into a type of free trading, a focus on personality and identity, changing identity, impersonation, especially of celebrities.

Boylan, who wrote the screenplay and stars as Red, is a lively character – a free spirit, irritating and undependable. We see this fairly quickly as she is fired from her job at a real estate agency even though she gets the award for best clown in the office. Her mother Viv (Kittson), is severe on her while her grandfather, veteran Tony Barry, is more tolerant. And she has a nice childhood friend, Frank (Campbell), who, despite all the odds, tries to help, loves her.

When we visit Red’s room, we find that she is devoted to Dolly Parton, dressing as her to receive her clown award. However, she is spotted by an agent (Barber) and given some opportunities to audition as Dolly. But, most of the impersonators at the clubs are cross-dressing men impersonating favourite stars such as Barbra Streisand and Lady Gaga. Red has to persuade them that she is the real thing. And there is a clash with the compere, impersonating Elvis and, unless we knew beforehand, we wouldn’t recognise that Elvis is being played by Rose Byrne who, we are told, was the contact between the film and Dolly Parton herself who gave permission for all the songs and some clips of interviews with her as well as a range of quotes which appear on screen, something between Shakespeare and Christmas card exhortations.

Audiences who enjoy Dolly Parton, and her songs and lyrics, will be pleased throughout the film with so many of her favourites getting an airing. And, of course, Dolly Parton teamed with Kenny Rogers and this form something of a pattern for the screenplay here with Daniel Webber as a Kenny Rogers impersonator, attracted and absolutely devoted (to quote another song) to Red.

Red is successful in this world of impersonation, supported by her agent, and by head of the agency (Cannavale), a former Neil Diamond impersonator, and doing well with a rendition of a song that highlights the film’s themes, “I am, I said…”. She jets off to Hong Kong to perform, tours around Australia, while her mother is quite disbelieving. And poor Frank is often on the receiving end of Red’s disdain.

However, this is quite a moralising film, despite the fact that there are some crass and tacky moments. Ultimately (especially when Kenny proposes on stage), Red has to think about who she really is, having become Dolly Parton in dress, behaviour, attitudes, songs, giving up her own personality.

The world of the impersonator, camaraderie, jealousies, audience acclaim, can be attractive – but what does it do to the real underlying person, personality? Red has something of a rude awakening – but a final acknowledgement of her true self.

Roadshow