Kath & Kimderella [PG]

When the foxy ladies of Fountain Lakes win a trip to Italy, they think they’re in for sunshine, fine dining, and designer fashions. But when they arrive they discover that the country is broke and their booking at a hotel is non-existent. Luckily, during a tour of King Javier’s castle, Kath catches the eye of the King himself and they are invited to stay in his home. But emotional complications arise as, without Kel and Brett, the girls are vulnerable and King Javier determines to woo Kath, Sharon becomes smitten with the King’s page, and Kim catches the eye of the Prince who then proposes. 

This flick didn’t last very long at the cinemas and was a pretty quick release to DVD really, so I hired it not expecting anything fantastic. However, Kath & Kim are such an appealing duo that, even though this movie was actually pretty mediocre, my family and me still really enjoyed it for the characters and strength of the show and the writing alone. 

When the foxy ladies of Fountain Lakes win a trip to Italy, they think they’re in for sunshine, fine dining, and designer fashions. But when they arrive they discover that the country is broke and their booking at a hotel is non-existent. Luckily, during a tour of King Javier’s castle, Kath catches the eye of the King himself and they are invited to stay in his home. But emotional complications arise as, without Kel and Brett, the girls are vulnerable and King Javier determines to woo Kath, Sharon becomes smitten with the King’s page, and Kim catches the eye of the Prince who then proposes. 

Although some of the gags were a bit obvious, this movie was actually really clever. It’s filmed very brightly with a slight fuzzy tinge (like a lot of fairytale family films that aren’t animated e.g. Nanny McPhee) and features quite a cute and clever mash-up of princess-themed fairytales including Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, The Princess and the Pea, and of course Cinderella. 

Running parallel to these fairytale plotlines are quite a few clever political ones with some fairly strong messages about education, gay marriage rights, and general Westernisation. 

Some gags from the series find their way into the mix as well as a few celebratory references to Magda Szubanski’s sexual status of lesbian. 

The entire thing is just a load of fun! It’s not meant to be taken seriously, it’s packed with familiar faces, and it features a pretty fast-paced and ironic ending, a little bit like Bran Nue Dae. 

Starring Jane Turner, Gina Riley, Magda Szubanski, Glenn Robbins, Peter Rowsthorn, Rob Sitch, Richard E. Grant, Erin Mullallu, Jessica De Gouw, Mick Molloy, Frank Woodley, and Barry Humphries, Kath & Kimderella is a really fun movie packed with foxy styles, romance, drama, politics, fairytales, and heaps of comedy. It doesn’t really look like much, but it’s actually hugely clever and entertaining. We really loved it!