TORONTO – There has been a lot of unexpected news about “Deb,” feature directorial debut Rebel Wilson, in the last few months. Wilson has been in a war of words with indie producers since July. The comedian took to her 11 million Instagram followers to blast the producers for trying to prevent the film from being selected as the closing film at the Toronto International Film Festival. Despite an apparently pending defamation lawsuit against Wilson by said producers, “The Deb” has come to Toronto. And surprise, especially for TIFF closer, the film is not bad.
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Adapted from Hannah Reilly’Australian Youth Theatre’s 2022 stage production, ‘The Deb’, is a familiar twist on the teenage fish out of water story. Maeve (Charlotte McInnes) is one of the most popular girls at her high school in Sydney (that’s a high school for North Americans). Obsessed with social media monitoring, she crosses the line to try to make a political point at a school assembly. Not only is her classmates effectively rejecting her, but her mother, also the school principal, expels her and sends her to live with her cousin in the Australian blind. A town so small that the bus drops it off in the middle of nowhere.
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Maeve’s cousin, Taylah (Natalie Abbott), is the sweetest thing to dream about visiting The Deb, short for old-school debutante dance, but also the rage of the local mean-girl clique led by Annabelle (Stevie Jean). Morally offended by the town’s obsession with The Deb, Maeve decides to interview various members of the town for an upcoming podcast about the event. Meanwhile, Taylin’s widowed father, Rick (Shane Jacobson), can barely pay his bills while juggling the role of mayor of a community in desperate need of irrigation funding from the government. Oh, and there’s the old Seamstress Shell (The country of Morice), whose existence seems dedicated to playing The Deb to an increasingly ungrateful group of teenage girls (not to mention their parents).
It’s easy to see where this is going, especially when it’s too cool for school Dusty (Costa D’Angelo) arrives on the scene to break down Maeve’s emotional barriers in the big city. And to be fair, the film never tries to hide its comforting predictability. Wilson tries to pay homage to Australian comedies from the 90s, such as “Murial’s Wedding” or “The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.” These classics, however, were distinctly sophisticated despite their broad appeal. Wilson does an admirable job, but the material is too formulaic and cluttered with tangential storylines to reach those lofty heights. Fortunately, Wilson has the cast and the music at her disposal.
The numbers begin with “FML”, a fun score that immediately tells the audience that this is a movie musical and will not hide it. The rest And Washington and Hannah ReillyA person’s songs are simply great. “In The Spotlight” and “Ugly” evoke pop sensibilities (think “Six: The Musical”) and “Pretty Strong” is a euphoric conclusion that almost makes you forgive the over-stuffed narrative you endured to get there.
The film’s other secret weapons are Abbott and Macinnes, who exude big-screen charisma. Not only can they sing—Abbott, in particular, has a voice that’s absolutely mesmerizing—but the newcomers are talented enough to almost carry the film when it needs it most (emphasis on “almost”). And when the cast sings or dances, they shine front and center.
Wilson, who also plays Annabelle’s mother slash music manager slash town hairdresser, has a rare “additional writing” credit at the beginning of the film. Perhaps there was simply too much added to the original script and her character for comfort. Wilson’s swagger is sometimes funny, but often falls flat. “The Deb” is an absolute example where the less is more mantra could have elevated the entire effort.
Despite a few too many stories and Wilson’s comic indulgence, the musical numbers are often inspired and strong. Wilson proves that he can direct at least the musical aspect of the film. And, boy, those Aussie kids, um, legitimately twenty-somethings, can grown-up sing. [C]
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