person or book cover
Screen cap from promotional trailer
form y separately published work icon The Brush-Off single work   film/TV   crime   humour  
Adaptation of The Brush-Off Shane Maloney , 1996 single work novel
Issue Details: First known date: 2004... 2004 The Brush-Off
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'When Agnelli is demoted to Minister of Arts and Water, he decides to earn brownie points by raising funds for the next election campaign. Murray is on the case, meeting with philanthropists and arts connoisseurs. This is where the trouble begins.'

Source: Screen Australia. (Sighted: 5/4/2013)

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

Works about this Work

Generic Outlier : John Clarke and ‘The Shabby Suit Crime Comedy’ Marty Murphy , 2019 single work criticism
— Appears in: Comedy Studies , vol. 10 no. 1 2019; (p. 88-101)

'From 1999 to 2005, Australian cinema produced several crime comedies beginning with Gregor Jordan’s Two Hands (1999) which served as a ‘prototype’ (Grindon 2012) for the variations that followed, including two farcical satires adapted for the screen by John Clarke. Clarke adapted for television two crime novels by Australian author Shane Maloney, Stiff (2004) and The Brush-Off (Neil, 2004). For Stiff, Clarke directed as well as wrote the screenplay. Production for both was by Huntaway films, a company owned by him, The Brush-Off director, Sam Neill, and co-producer, Jay Cassells. While these two films do not match the famed Clarke and Dawe sketches (Australian Broadcasting Company TV) for satirical bite and artistry, they are an interesting subset of this crime comedy ‘cluster’ (Grindon 2012) within what might be called ‘the shabby suit crime comedy’ genre. Clarke’s crumpled protagonist stands apart as an educated little man up against the forces of political corruption and vice. It is argued here that the films identified from this short time-span share thematic concerns and iconography as well as neglectful male tailoring: the group of Australian crime comedies possesses similar syntactic and semantic generic qualities (Altman, 1984). This article discusses the outlier status of Clarke’s pieces within that group as farcical satires in a political rather than criminal milieu, as well as their distinctive techniques and artistic success.'

Source: Abstract.

Fun and Folly Fred Pawle , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: Limelight , December 2005; (p. 43)

— Review of Stiff John Clarke , 2004 single work film/TV ; The Brush-Off John Clarke , 2004 single work film/TV
Fun and Folly Fred Pawle , 2005 single work review
— Appears in: Limelight , December 2005; (p. 43)

— Review of Stiff John Clarke , 2004 single work film/TV ; The Brush-Off John Clarke , 2004 single work film/TV
Generic Outlier : John Clarke and ‘The Shabby Suit Crime Comedy’ Marty Murphy , 2019 single work criticism
— Appears in: Comedy Studies , vol. 10 no. 1 2019; (p. 88-101)

'From 1999 to 2005, Australian cinema produced several crime comedies beginning with Gregor Jordan’s Two Hands (1999) which served as a ‘prototype’ (Grindon 2012) for the variations that followed, including two farcical satires adapted for the screen by John Clarke. Clarke adapted for television two crime novels by Australian author Shane Maloney, Stiff (2004) and The Brush-Off (Neil, 2004). For Stiff, Clarke directed as well as wrote the screenplay. Production for both was by Huntaway films, a company owned by him, The Brush-Off director, Sam Neill, and co-producer, Jay Cassells. While these two films do not match the famed Clarke and Dawe sketches (Australian Broadcasting Company TV) for satirical bite and artistry, they are an interesting subset of this crime comedy ‘cluster’ (Grindon 2012) within what might be called ‘the shabby suit crime comedy’ genre. Clarke’s crumpled protagonist stands apart as an educated little man up against the forces of political corruption and vice. It is argued here that the films identified from this short time-span share thematic concerns and iconography as well as neglectful male tailoring: the group of Australian crime comedies possesses similar syntactic and semantic generic qualities (Altman, 1984). This article discusses the outlier status of Clarke’s pieces within that group as farcical satires in a political rather than criminal milieu, as well as their distinctive techniques and artistic success.'

Source: Abstract.

Awards

2005 nominated Logie Awards Most Outstanding Miniseries or Telemovie
2004 nominated Australian Film Institute Awards Best Telefeature or Mini-Series
2004 nominated Australian Film Institute Awards Best Screenplay in Television
Last amended 31 Mar 2014 14:58:01
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