Context Darryl Kerrigan example essay topic

The Kerrigans are a family living in the comedy fest motion picture The Castle, created by the same talent that brought you The Full Monty and Waking Ned Divine. Credits: DIRECTED BY Rob Sitch WRITING CREDITS (IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER) Santo Ci lauro Tom Gl eisner Jane Kennedy Rob Sitch CAST (IN CREDITS ORDER) ACTOR ROLE Michael Caton Darryl Kerrigan Anne Tenney Sal Kerrigan Stephen Curry Dale Kerrigan Anthony Simcoe Steve Kerrigan Sophie Lee Tracy Kerrigan Wayne Hope Wayne Kerrigan Ti riel Mora Dennis Denuto Eric Bana Con Petropoulous Charles 'Bud' Ting well Lawrence Hammill Robyn Nevin Federal Court Judge Costas K ilias Farouk Bryan Dawe Ron Graham Monty Maizes Jack Lynda Gibson Evo nne PRODUCED BY Debra Choate (producer) Michael Hirsh (executive producer) ORIGINAL MUSIC BY Edmund Choi (US version) CINEMATOGRAPHY BY Mariana Mar usic FILM EDITING BY Wayne H yett CASTING BY Jane Kennedy When proud tow truck driver and father of four Darryl Kerrigan is given a compulsory acquisition to leave his Victorian home which neighbours a potentially expanding airport, his response is "bugger em". His vanity however leads him to the refusal of any compensation, as he believes that "a man's home is his castle" and that his home is built of irreplaceable love and memories. This uncooperative manner leads to challenging the Government and Airport Authorities legally. However that does not stop a man like Darryl Kerrigan from retaliating to their threats, including towing away the corporate president's front gate! Viewers enjoying the comedy featuring in movies such as Strictly Ballroom and The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert will appreciate The Castle's offbeat sense of humour.

However some may be offended as the humour is based around the obtuseness of the characters. The suitability is effected with frequent yet not ongoing profanity, therefore the film's appropriateness is aimed towards Senior High School students and older. The fairly extensive yet minimal array of legally educational material is beneficial to students in the beginnings of their legal studying. Though the lack of depth in this topic proves to develop major gaps in the information supplied by the film. The Kerrigan's strong support for each other even throughout the difficult times, also may prove to be guidance to youths having family difficulties. Overall the educational merit is minimal with the above topics featured in very short and interrupted scenes.

A familiar discourse among the individuals of contrasting social groups is that of the working class. The Kerrigan family and their neighbours show examples of this laid back and unconcerned usage of their wording. In this context Darryl Kerrigan especially can be referred to as a larrikin, which is shown clearly when he is enraged or threatened. The language used by him in those sorts of situations is very coarse and informal, and there is no regard on his side about whether his language is suitable to the environment around him. Further a legal discourse is presented in the court cases and used to full potential by the lawyers and judges.

In the language of law all words have precise meanings and usages, and can not be substituted as featured in the discourses of the working class. The context of these discourses is formal, similar to the formal discourse of the rich class, demonstrated by the corporate president. However not containing legal terms. Lastly the discourse used by Con (Darryl's daughter's husband) which can be described by his use and reference to combat techniques and strategies. An example includes his supporting comments to Dale about his fighting technique during the court case.

There are two dominant interpretations which give a brief explanation of the plot. The most dominating being the invited reading with the other the oppositional. The invited reading of The Castle summarises the plot in the following ways: 1 - The highest possession to an Aussie family are its siblings and their home. Shown throughout the film by the loving relationship that the family has.

2 - If citizens (in lower classes of society) don't stand up to the larger more dominating companies and businesses, then the upper class people will go unchallenged with what ever they attempt. (Darryl quotes this invited reading during a discussion with his solicitor Denis Denuto: "And do you know why people like them get away with it? Because people like us don't stand up to them!" ) A traditional way in which such things occurred was when Whiteman took away the aborigines land. Darryl quotes when he is packing his things to move out, "I'm really starting to understand how the aborigines feel, this land is their home it holds their memories, you can't just pick it up and plonk it somewhere else! This country's gotta learn to stop stealing other peoples land!" An oppositional reading of the film includes that poor people are too unintelligent and not educated enough to deal with large businesses themselves and therefore need the aid of rich upper class people in order to achieve any success. Justified by the fact that when Darryl goes to court initially he is represented by a low-level attorney (Denis Denuto) and has no success, however when the high status Lawrence Hammill represents him in the high court, the results are contradictory.

Personally I read the movie as a stereotypical exaggeration of Australian family values. It is stereotypical because Australian culture is a combination of various foreign cultures, many of which are different to that of the Kerrigans. Although this is a very educationally useful aspect as the entire movie is an excellent example of stereotyping. The common stereotypes include the working class, mate ship, and larrikin ism. More modern stereotypes include behaviour such as 'getting good deals' (showed by Steve), watching the favourite family show after dinner, and going to the family's favourite place on the weekend / holidays. The stereotyping is the only aspect of the film whose educational depth proves to be of any real use to students.

These stereotypes are likely to be difficult to understand for foreigners, and therefore this film would be very unsuitable to someone whose not familiar with modern stereotypical Australian activities and values. Nevertheless those born in Australia will find that they can relate themselves to these. The Kerrigans will be coming to Brisbane on the 16/11 so come next door and see your new neighbours!