Danny Deckchair is as charming a movie as I've seen in years - a total surprise of a film with a heart as big as the great continent it comes from.
Rhys Ifans is nothing short of amazing as Danny - bringing a believability factor to a role that easily could have come off as slap-shtick. Ifans brings an inherent vulnerability that makes Danny, a bit of a loser, immediately likeable. He isn't fully prepared - nor is the viewer - for the remarkable journey he finds himself taking and Ifans expressive face registers everything; fear, anger, disbelief, acceptance, but most of all wonder. The transformation Danny undergoes upon his unexpected arrival in Clarence is remarkable as his life changes in almost unimaginable ways. Where in Sydney he'd been stuck in a dead end job (where he still made his own fun) living with a woman increasingly growing weary of him, no real prospects for the future and his "lame" ideas shot down at every turn, in Clarence he is hailed as a hero, transforming not only himself but Glenda and the town itself.
Miranda Otto's Glenda is a gloriously rare creature, an enigma: tough yet fragile as lace the town views her almost as an outcast, yet when Danny arrives, she becomes adored by everyone. Otto's transformation is no less astonishing than Danny's and as the film progresses she almost literally glows. She becomes the ideal woman in nearly every way imaginable. When things get tough, we see another crack in her veneer and learn a lot when she cries out "I just don't want to feel." Otto makes it utterly impossible not to fall in love with this beautiful creature.
The supporting cast all turn in terrific performances, both the folks back in Sydney and Danny's new life in Clarence.
The film - and Danny's message comes across loud and clear: there are no little blokes, no little jobs, no little anything, that everything in the world matters and has worth.
Watching Danny Deckchair one slips back a little into a world where anything is possible - especially if you've got a few dozen balloons and a couple tanks of helium!
This gets my highest recommendation.
