Jucy (2010)

Directed by Louise Alston
Starring Cindy Nelson, Francesca Gasteen
Rated M
Australia 

“A womantic comedy of platonic proportions”

Jackie and Lucy are two 20-something slackers working in Brisbane’s (real, and pretty amazing) cult video superstore, Trash Video. Jackie (Cindy Nelson) is a manic-depressive, Lucy (Francesca Gasteen) is a compulsive eater. Neither are any good at making friends or life decisions, so they pretty much just hang out with each other. After yet another disastrous appearance at a cast (naked!) party for their local theater group, when a snarky nude blonde accuses them of being ‘straight lesbians’ in a ‘womance’ (“That’s the girl version of a bromance”, she helpfully explains), our hapless heroines decide that maybe the mean naked lady is right, and that maybe there’s a world out there beyond flaming-crimson hair-dye and cupcake binges.

And so, Jackie and Lucy both try out for the lead in Jane Eyre. Jackie does so because she thinks it’ll get her laid. Lucy thinks it will be her ticket to fame and/or fortune. To prepare, Lucy meticulously rehearses her lines. Jackie takes a different route: she stops taking her psych meds.

The audition happens. One of ‘em gets the role, one of ‘em loses her mind. And then things get really messy. Throw in a pudgy stalker, a preening douchebag, a few full-on meltdowns, and a synchronized dance (they synchronize dance A LOT in Australian comedies) and you’ve got your basic recipe for either disaster or enlightenment. Or possibly both.

A frothy and likeable cross between Ghost World and Muriel’s Wedding, Jucy is a fun, romp-y coming-of-age comedy. It threatens to dip into tearjerker territory here and there, but mostly it stays light n’ sweet. There’s nothing salacious or sleazy on deck (bummer), but the leads are adorable and it’s almost impossible not to root for ‘em.

- Ken McIntyre