It’s a familiar template used by screenwriters for Aussie films.  Someone accustomed to big city life is thrust, against their wishes, into the countryside.  They’re intensely negative at first but after making new friends and discovering fresh pastimes, they realise outback life isn’t so bad.  These themes are at the heart of The Deb, a high budget (by local standards) release which marks the directorial debut of Australian actor Rebel Wilson (Pitch Perfect).

Maeve (MacInnes) is an attention-seeking, social media influencer, with a strong feminist bent, who attends a posh private high school in Sydney.  Her mum may be the headmaster, but it doesn’t stop her from being expelled when she deliberately exposes her breasts at a school assembly meeting as part of a protest.  As punishment, she is sent to the small country town of Dunburn to spend several weeks living with her uncle Rick (Jacobson), and similarly aged cousin, Taylah (Abbott).

The film’s title refers the community’s annual “debutante ball” and the views of these two teenage girls couldn’t be more different.  Taylah is excited by the right-of-passage opportunity to find a date, dress up, and have a great time.  Maeve describes is as a “antiquated heteronormative shitshow from hell” and starts work on a podcast where she, and her listeners, can mock the locals who are participating.  It’s not hard to see where the narrative will head from here with both characters, particularly Maeve, receiving life lessons and a hard reality check.

The source material is a 2022 stage musical authored by Megan Washington and Hannah Reilly which premiered in Sydney.  The movie is also a musical, but I wasn’t convinced by the elaborate, profanity-laden dance numbers.  They’re “over produced” and it’s the style of show where you can overtly see the characters are lip-syncing and the songs were recorded in a music studio.  The film feels more authentic when there are regular, one-on-one conversations and we get to understand the key players a little better.  Natalie Abbott is the standout as Taylah – a girl battling personal insecurities, but who is not afraid to stand up for what’s right.

It’s hard to speak of the film without addressing the elephant in the room – a legal stoush between director Rebel Wilson and the film’s producers.  It’s still playing out before the courts with allegations of sexual harassment, financial embezzlement, and cover-ups.  You can read more online, if you wish, but it’s the reason why it’s taken 2 ½ years for the movie to finally receive an Australian release.  It was shot back in 2023 with the late Julian McMahon, who passed away last year, making a small cameo in one of his final roles.

While I’m not a fan of the music, several subplots (the footy???) and its general corniness, the actors save the day with their amusing, genuine performances.  The Deb is a mixed bag and while I don’t think it’ll be regarded as a memorable Aussie classic, it provides simple fun.  Sometimes, that’s all we need.