Backbencher

The Dish is a fun comedy that takes a light-hearted look at an historical event. The film documents Australia's role in communicating with and broadcasting the Apollo 11 mission to the moon. Sam Neil (Jurassic Park, In the Mouth of Madness) and Patrick Warburton (Seinfeld, Family Guy) star as two scientists overseeing a large satellite situated in a sheep field near a small Australian town. Neil plays Bill Buxton, an Aussie scientist and Warburton portrays Al Burnett a project overseer from NASA. Despite the best efforts of Burnett , Buxton and his crew flub up the mission and face a mountain of adversity before their successful broadcast of the moon walk. This is a very light comedy that works in almost every way. The film's only weakness lies in the cheesy love story between Glenn (Tom Long) and Janine (Eliza Szonert), and the "rebellious 60s teenager" whom is just too archetypical to be taken seriously. These portions are cliché and stale. Dr. Isern has referred many times to Australia and the US being "mates." This film demonstrates this relationship, as America is portrayed as a great friend of Australia, which the latter country does not want to disappoint. The soundtrack is pretty great throughout, with many recognizable American hits--there is an excellent scene which includes a cover of the "Hawaii 5-O Theme" which should not be missed. The Dish is a fun and nostalgic movie that had very little problems; it presents an historical event in a fun and accessible fashion that most should enjoy on a comedic level in no other.