The experience of watching Boytown left me as underwhelmed as I have possibly ever been in my movie-going lifetime. It's understandable if a film is simply poor, but when the talent on disposal here comes up with something as utterly dull as what we see on Boytown, the frustration soon turns to sheer hostility.
With a tremendous legacy to Australian comedy with his appearances on the The Late Show and on radio Mick Molloy appeared headed towards a promising movie career with the release of his first film Crackerjack, an enjoyable F.O.W romp with an outstanding ensemble cast and a handful of legitimate laugh-out-loud moments. If Boytown is anything to go by Molloy is already out of ideas as a writer and his performance on the screen (much like the rest of the cast) lacks energy and the chemistry that we should expect from a cast that includes Glenn Robbins, Bob Franklin and Wayne Hope, all of them veterans of the Australian comedy scene with many years of experience working together.
If there's anything to be taken from the film it's that a handful of the songs may bring a smile to your face, but Spinal Tap these guys ain't. If anything Molloy should have brought more of the silliness of the song lyrics to the script. Instead Boytown relies solely on it's silly premise while the performers actually appearing on screen are uninteresting and lifeless and ultimately unfunny. Wayne Hope is totally wasted as the butt of lame homosexual jokes while Glenn Robbins, one of the most talented comedic clowns in Australian television history is inexplicably one of the most boring straight men to play the lead in an Australian comedy in recent memory.
The biggest disappointment though is Molloy. That a guy of genuine talent can be content releasing uninspiring filth such as Boytown suggests he is careless, or worse, ran out of ideas on Crackerjack. At least it doesn't look like he's having too much fun on screen - I can't imagine how anyone watching could have any fun off it.