Mental (2012)

Directed by: P.J. Hogan
Country: Australia / USA

Review: “Mental” tries to parody on mental illness and traumatic lives, using colorful tones and nutty behaviors. It was written and directed by P.J.Hogan, an Australian filmmaker who has been devoting himself to comedies for over 20 years. The story centers on a dysfunctional family, constituted by a mother with a talent for singing, an absent and unfaithful father and five disturbed children. They all have a propensity for craziness and sometimes are conscious of that. When the mother leaves for a psychiatric hospital, a woman arrives to take care of the girls, but she will reveal herself even crazier than the rest of the team. Using unorthodox methods she ends up being an aid for the family, yet without set in order her own traumas. Some sarcastic humor worked ok once in a while and in isolated situations, but as a whole the film misses the point. It showed constant concerns on giving a frenetic image and impose madness everywhere and in everyone, to the point of becoming disarticulated and, not infrequently, ridicule. Not even suitable for crazies!