A charismatic, crazy hothead transforms a family's life when she becomes the nanny of five girls whose mother has cracked from her husband's political ambitions and his infidelity.
Overlong and overcharged, there are problems here that even a churchload of nuns couldn’t solve.
Mental is a weird disappointment.
The playing is way too broad, the script is all over the place, and its chaotic last half-hour must stretch even the best will in the world.
So aggressively clownish that the only possible response is to cringe.
Opinion will divide as to whether there is offence to be taken here on the subject of mental health. My opinion is no, but as the saccharine taste builds up faintly towards the end, it's a close-run thing.
A deliciously pungent and idiosyncratic comedy drama, with reams of quotable dialogue, and a powerful undercurrent of pain and loneliness which makes its happier scenes all the more uplifting.
Heavy-handed satire on Australian suburban life.
Mental at least has its heart in the right place, and deserves some credit for tackling stigma about mental health issues head on.
General release. Check local listings for show times.
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