Starstruck

Gillian Armstrong's 1982 Australian film follows Jackie, a young woman in Sydney trying to save her family's pub. She wants to be a singer; her fourteen-year-old cousin Angus takes on managing her and tries unusual methods to get her noticed. The energy comes from new wave pop. The songs rest on the Australian music scene of the period; the costumes, hair and colour are deliberately excessive and the narrative has no interest in realism. Armstrong had been known for serious drama and this film was an unexpected change of genre. The narrative does not make success easy; most of Jackie's attempts fail and the humour comes from that. Who it's for: those who like eighties musicals and Australian cinema. Who it's not for: viewers looking for a measured manner; the film is exuberant and overstated throughout.