Dirty Deeds

Vietnam, 1969: a chopper makes a pizza drop to the guys crouching in a wheatfield below. Not a serious movie, then. War over, cut to Sydney, where veteran Darcy (Worthington) hooks up with Uncle Barry (Brown) in a dodgy one-arm bandit business. Baz makes a good living with the help of bent cop Ray (Neill) and, despite the odd whack, life's bonzer: he has a sweet wife (Collette), a cute kid and a pretty girlfriend (Morassi). Then the Mob arrives. Inspired by an urban myth concerning organised crime in the '60s, writer/director Caesar wanted to make a film about American mafiosi who come looking for a piece of Sydney's action and get taken out for a spot of 'pig-shooting'. The only wonder is how this got further than that initial desire. On the plus side, the film looks good - cameraman Geoffrey Hall uses some neat gimmicks and camera angles, the sets and costumes are authentic, and the cast's performances are passable. But the script's a dag.