Bad Eggs (2003) User Reviews

Bad Eggs is Good Eggs

[slugerama · 7/10 · 3 August 2003]

There are a number of Australian movies around that tend to play up the typical Australian bloke or "sheila" image which quite frankly, make me want to curl up and die in embarrassment. (One of the previews I saw with this movie does nothing to make me think otherwise, a movie called Take Away). Then there are movies like Bad Eggs.

Bad Eggs tends not to try and have a laugh at us Aussies, rather, it aims (and for the most part, succeeds) in going for main stream comedy which could well work for international audiences.

If you can get past the so called "acting"(they are mostly stand up comedians, not thespians)you may end up enjoying a very witty movie, which contains quite a few sight gags, which are very funny. (The one in which the security guard is watching a send up of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? is quite hilarious)

"Imagine what you could do, with that cash bonanza of $478 dollars".

Even if you are not an Aussie, you should still find plenty to laugh at with this movie.

This is without doubt "Champagne comedy"

Saaaad

[refsp · 5/10 · 31 October 2003]

Ok. Sad. Predictable. Not funny. Australian action. I dunno... These are minutes of my life which I will never ever get back.... ever...

sorry.

Light hearted tale of police corruption

[stevewest-1 · 26 November 2006]

I watched Bad Eggs with the preconception that it was a mix of serious cop drama and comedy. After watching The Late Show and listening to Martin/Molloy, Tony Martin has come to my attention again through his return to the airwaves on MMM. I am catching up on the self-confessed movie buff's interim works by watching Bad Eggs and reading his book Lolly Scramble.

Bob Franklin and Mick Molloy didn't strike me as the two best leading actors for a film, but they perform respectably within the low budget Australian comedy format. The comedy and drama are better integrated than I was expecting, Bad Eggs is basically a tale of two detectives with a capacity for ineptness and clumsiness, who get mixed up in corruption in their own department, the fictional Zero Tolerance Unit of Victoria. There probably actually are individual agencies like this now with a similar lack of transparency, with ASIO recently being expanded and given increased powers. The film gets serious when the two detectives get deeper and deeper in the poo, but the comedic elements return when they strike back with the help of Northey, played by Alan Borough.

On the whole Bad Eggs is akin to a film like True Lies on the comedy scale, it is primarily a drama with comedy arising from storyline elements rather than from deliberately inserted jokes. It never manages to excel in any particular area but what was achieved was a film with a professional look, a storyline that maintains interest for the first 90 minutes, and a cast of fairly decent Australian actors and comedians.

Very Disappointing

[SootyGrunter · 4/10 · 6 December 2003]

[Minor spoilers!!]

I have much respect for Tony Martin, Mick Molloy and Bob Franklin. Tony Martin and Bob Franklin especially so, being, in my opinion, two of the funniest men alive. However, I thought that Bad Eggs was terrible. It had several gags that were extremely funny (Australia's Most Wanted and the 4 colour pen come to mind immediately). But on the whole the movie was not funny and the plot wasn't interesting or clever.

Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't "understand" this brand of comedy. Bob Franklin's work on Jimeon, Tony Martin's on the Late Show, and even Mick Molloy's "The Mick Molloy Show" were all Australian television moments that I thoroughly enjoyed. Bad Eggs contained only glimpses of this humor and I didn't care for the plot. I guess I was expecting it to be a whole lot funnier than it actually was. I felt this movie didn't carry enough humour to be a comedy, nor was it successful as a crime/thriller/drama. It did neither well, falling somewhere in the middle . . . . mediocrity.

Cmon guys. You should have done much better than that! I was expecting Tony Martin's writing combined with Bob and Mick as the main characters to produce something much better.

no more spoofs

[the_crock · 9/10 · 3 January 2005]

There have been many movies made that are unintelligent spoofs of other movies. Luckily a large portion of these go straight to DVD these days, but every now and then one slips through the crack and I end up watching it. I'm always disappointed. They are littered with obvious jokes, and often look like they were ghost written by Fran Drescher. Even though I am a huge fan of Tony Martin, I was just a little sceptical that his movie wasn't just to be a cheap spoof of old Aussie cop movies. After ten minutes I knew I was onto a winner and that this movie was able to make me laugh without resorting to cheap "skit show" type humour. This movie didn't go great in the cinema, but hopefully someone gives Tony Martin a big pile of cash to make another movie. It would be a shame for Australian cinema if he didn't make another movie. Tony Martin may not be a cinematic visionary, but he knows movies and comedies, that's more than I can say for most directors. I enjoyed this movie, and it was great to not see jokes coming. Long live bad eggs.

Stinks

[cogs · 1/10 · 28 July 2003]

"Bad Eggs" is an utterly terrible Australian comedy, poorly written and remarkably badly performed by a band of non-acting types (mostly stand-up comedians). It's films like this that reveal the dearth of quality film talent in Australia, and of the misguided efforts to cultivate what little talent that does exist. It is the incestuous attitude within the Australian film industry where it matters who you know and not what you know (or your talent) that contributes so greatly to the problems. Tony Martin is a well known comedy writer and performer – how that translates into feature filmmaker is anyone's guess. It is an amateurish effort from a bunch of personalities clearly out of their depth. Maybe they should have written a sitcom.

Good Movie

[dpharrison1 · 10/10 · 24 July 2003]

This movie [bad eggs ] was one of the best and entertaining movies we have seen for a while. There were some great action scenes and some funny scenes and some unexpected scenes. I would highly recommend the movie.

Ill conceived and truly awful

[Malodramatic · 3/10 · 25 September 2003]

Who would have thought that Tony Martin, the director of this crass witless "comedy" was once a member of the fabulous D Generation comedy team? To say the plot is threadbare and ill thought out would be an understatement - nothing gels together and apart from a few hackneyed set pieces, this film reeks of desperation. Boys, you might get a few cheap laughs from the easily pleased, but for those people with a modicum of understanding of humour and screenplay development, this is a shoddy pitiful attempt at a comedy.

Someone is on the shonk. To steal a phrase ‘From the opening scene we know that we're onto something good'. Finally, after along time, we have a decent Aussie movie on our hands.

[Old Joe · 29 April 2004]

In a time when Aussie movies are in a bit of bad patch, here is one that really surprised me. It is the Tony Martin brainchild, ‘Bad Eggs', a film that is so serious, that you have to look real hard for its funny bits. Martin has made a very intelligent movie, one that simmers along at a nice pace, includes a fine cast and shows off some of the great Melbourne locations. ‘Bad Eggs' is a movie that proves some cops will go to extraordinary lengths to get to the bottom of the trouble. But no-one told these cops the trouble they might end up in as well……………

Ben Kinnear and Mike Paddock are undercover cops with the elite Zero Tolerance Unit. Busted down to uniformed duties after a series of humiliating blunders, the duo accidentally uncovers a conspiracy that goes right to the middle. Helped only by embittered reporter, Julie Bale and a reluctant computer geek, Northey, Ben and Mike set out to clear their names and expose the villains.

Most of the praise for ‘Bad Eggs' has to go writer/director Tony Martin. With this film he has proven that he has a future in the industry. The script he wrote for the film was extremely well written, as it had a fascinating story, some clever character creations (although some of the guys we see onscreen are anything but clever) and the Aussie language we hear in the film is a good reminder of that culture. Yet the story was also quite complex, as we learn more and more about what is actually going on.

Martin's direction was another highlight of the film. With this sort of quality direction, it would be hard to believe this is Martin's first time as a movie director, making this film an even bigger achievement for him. The opening of the movie must have been difficult to shoot, but Tony got it spot on. The film flowed beautifully after the start. I truly look forward to Martin's next movie.

Bad Eggs also has a great Australian cast. The main characters in the film are Ben Kinnear (Mick Molloy) and Mike Paddock (Ben Franklin). Molloy gives a pretty good role here, as he is funny and serious at various moments of the film. His expressions are also quite interesting. It is a much better role from Molloy than his performance in ‘Crackerjack'. Franklin (From TV's Crash/Burn), was great in his role, as he was very funny, although he seem not to have to work hard at being this way. Paddock says and does some of the more silly antics in the movie. I love how he goes ‘Chicka-chow'. Another integral character to the story is Julie Bale (Judith Lucy). Here, Lucy shows that she really can act. Lucy and Molloy suit each other onscreen, sharing a good chemistry in ‘Bad Eggs'. Judith also gives her character a steely resolve, something that I enjoyed seeing.

The supporting cast of the film is just as great. Northey (Alan Brough) might be a geek, but proves he is a good guy, who helps Kinnear and Paddock when they need it the most. Heading the ZTU unit is Doug Gillespie (Marshall Napier), who we see has many headaches thanks to his undercover agents. While, Widow Eleanor Poulgrain (Robyn Nevin), help out Ben and Mike, when she could be excused for not doing so. The bad guys in the film are a bit ‘schonky' alright. Ted Pratt (Bill Hunter) is a foul mouthed senior cop, who is definitely not on the level. Helping Ted is Wicks (Nichols Bell), a very sneaky and unethical police official. Then, with a very interesting cameo appearance in the film is state premier Lionel Cray (Shaun Micallef). Micallef was pretty good in the movie, with his character very dubious and having some of the more memorable lines.

The various scenes in the film are great. The opening of the film with the out of control car, going into a shopping mall was great to see. Then you have setups such as the fire at the widow's house, the bombing of the house and the driving of a car into a service station gas tank all being entertaining. However there was one scene that reminded of a film that I did not like too much. The infiltration of the highly guarded computer room by Ben and Mike, reminded me of the vault scene from Mission Impossible (1996) for some reason. I also enjoyed the dancing sequence used at the end of the film, with Molloy and Lucy showing that they can dance beautifully together.

With that in mind, I also like the musical themes in ‘Bad Eggs'. The music makes the film seem like it is super serious, then at the change of a tone, the film can seem to be very ‘light-hearted'. I like the music that was used in the final scene of the movie, as it gave the film a ‘classy' kind of feeling, with the song in question being "Where or When" from singing maestro Frank Sinatra. The musical score for Bad Eggs was by David Graney and Clare Moore.

I have never seen a film that is so serious, yet at times so stupid. The balance of those elements works particularly well here. This film is not meant to be taken that seriously by its viewers, as the movie takes care of that for us. I was weary of this movie, because I was not a fan of the Mick Molloy Aussie flick ‘Crackerjack', but I have plenty of respect for ‘Bad Eggs'. Tony Martin can be pleased with this effort as director, as he has proven to me that he should continue his career in movie-making. I highly recommend ‘Bad Eggs', a film that I believe just might help clean up the ‘bad smells' that are starting to overtake the Australian Film Industry.

CMRS gives ‘Bad Eggs': 4 (Very Good Film)

Awful

[malvernator · 1/10 · 25 April 2004]

Big fan of Micallef and liked some of the stuff from Mr Franklin et al but this movie is SO BAD.

A hint of this was on the Micallef Show when Judith Lucey (one of the "stars") told everyone it had bombed, stunk out the cinema on it's release. At the time I thought she was merely attempting humour and playing down how good it was - BUT IT'S TRUE!!!! It really is that bad.

We hired it out with much anticipation, sat down in comfy chairs with our food and drink and waited for the movie to become funny. This never happened. We had to take the DVD out of the machine halfway through because it was simply the lamest, weakest "comedy" in Australian history. I think we may even have watched teletext instead.

The two main "actors" simply CANNOT act, they seem like they are waiting for the other one to say their line with shame on their faces. And it is a great shame. What a waste!

*Avoid at all costs*

Very Funny

[mighty_pickman · 8/10 · 27 July 2003]

A very solid directorial debut from one of Australia's finest comedy talents. Well written with good performances from Bob Franklin, Judith Lucy & long time Martin partner in crime Mick Molloy. Not a laugh a minute film, but very funny all the same, with a strong storyline (something too many comedies lack). The opening scene from a visual gag point of view is a real highlight.

Another thing worth noting, in a recent radio interview to promote the film, Martin said he made a conscious effort not put any trams in the film, as trams always seem to make an appearance in films set in Melbourne. Martin succeeds, this time including a train, part of another funny scene

Bad Eggs taste good

[pharrop · 9/10 · 28 July 2003]

Mmm. 'Bad Eggs' taste good. I didn't reach for the jaffas til halfway through this satisfying story, when I took a breath and realised I was deeply in movie land, concerned for the safety of the main characters, letting the mood setting music lull me along, laughing til I snorted at all the jokes 'raising the eyebrow' at the standard movie cliches. A lifetime of movie watching (bought on by asthma maybe, or was it the other way around) as well as quality movie industry interviews while on radio, has certainly given Tony Martin the skills required to deliver a top view. Go and enjoy this Australian sense of humour and story telling from a deeply talented NZ born man, admirably supported by his TV experienced wife, setting a damned high bar for the local industry.

Not your typical "Aussie Movie"

[Jason_Bar1 · 29 July 2003]

Just saw "Bad Eggs". It was a refreshing movie, (Compared to other Australian attempts at movie making) and the opening shots of the car "driven" by a dead person had the whole cinema laughing their guts out. You are watching wondering till almost the very end as to "who done it", some new actors, and some that that have probably been in every Aussie movie made...

Well worth watching, 7 out of 10 :)

Bad Eggs - goes down well!

[Shakamaker · 8/10 · 6 August 2003]

Bad Eggs is great debut from writer/director Tony Martin, starring well-known local talent.

We Aussies tend to enjoy our heroes portrayed as average-looking and bumbling, yet honest, lovable, and deceptively smart. On the flip side, we enjoy seeing our authorities and celebrities portrayed as dodgy, shady, corrupt, and fallible. (The tall-poppy syndrome.) This is a typical tale of a bumbling cop duo (Mick Molloy and Bob Franklin) who trip onto a trail of corruption, which goes a long way. In too deep and on the run, they must outsmart their hunters, and work out how to uncover the ring of corruption. Dragged into the mess is a local-rag reporter (the excellent Judith Lucy), who happens to be Molloy's ex-girlfriend, and a shy, conservative systems engineer (a very funny Alan Brough).

In what's essentially a p*ss-take of the local police, it's a 'serious' comedy, with most of the dialogue delivered in a overly-dramatic, dead-pan style. This fits in with the general style of the film, shot in a slightly pale, ghostly grading, with a score that helps the film keep it's faux-mystique.

Molloy and Lucy are fantastic together, and the sub-plot of their characters finding themselves helplessly thrown together again, after a less-than-amicable break-up, works very well. Bob Franklin is the real scene-stealer, though, as Molloy's slightly under-noticed partner.

Martin uses Franklin's brilliant straight-faced delivery, to help keep things from getting too serious. The debutant also livens things up with the use two truly excellent sight-gags, one of which is a hilarious narrated recollection by Franklin's character.

This film is good enough to even forgive the increasingly embarrassing number of times (four I think!) that the top of the boom mike can be seen in a couple of scenes. I don't think Mr. Martin will skip any more editing sessions for future projects! His raw talent, however, is plain to see. That, and the intelligence displayed in not trying to turn his debut film into more than it should be, has me looking forward to his next project.

Hopefully Bad Eggs will see the light of day overseas, as it's as darkly charming as other recent successful local films, The Castle, The Dish, and Crackerjack, are uplifting. A comeback of sorts, to the charming Aussie films of the seventies and early eighties? Please!

They don't make them like this anymore

[bringingrockback-68-805334 · 10/10 · 8 April 2019]

Genuinely smart and funny writing. A gem that I take pleasure in introducing people to.

Do yourself a favour. Australian comedy doesn't get much funnier than this.

Not bad...

[donlhumphries · 26 July 2003]

This movie describes itself as "a deadly serious comedy", but to me it is more of a "comedic thriller" in that the thriller aspect tends to predominate, with some laughs thrown in. It's well made, the plot being quite convoluted, and suspense maintained. Set in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, it can be compared with the movie "You Can't Stop the Murders" which was set in New South Wales. This latter film had more laughs, and less of the thriller element - but both are good movies and worth viewing. Bad Eggs gets 7 out of 10 from me.

Classic Aussie Comedy

[akshunhiro · 9/10 · 19 March 2021]

I had forgotten how great this movie is. From the opening scene to the end, Mick Molloy and Judith Lucy demonstrate once more what comic geniuses they are.

Aussie comedy is pretty dry and for those who like it that way, Bad Eggs is as dry as it gets.

Hilarious!!!

[jasonking-18530 · 10/10 · 15 March 2021]

Hilarious and highly underrated!!! I would recommend fans of snatch and lock stock.. similar humor but a little less violence...

Premium Comedy

[WheezyJoe · 8/10 · 21 October 2003]

For Australians, Bad Eggs is the long overdue reunion between Tony Martin and Mick Molloy. The two first got together on Australian television in the sketch-comedy scene with shows like The D-Generation and The Late Show on the ABC. They later made a return with a national radio show called Martin/Molloy, which became a huge hit, naturally. Considering they have tackled two out of the three major mediums I guess then next logical step is to see if they can botch up cinema. Bad Eggs marks Mick Molloy's return to the big screen after the hailing success of last years hit film Crackerjack but marks Tony Martin's first appearance in a long time. The word appearance is used lightly however as this time the scrawny New Zealander stays behind the camera as writer and director giving Molloy centre stage. If you're clever though you just might notice Martin's presence in several quick shots throughout the picture.

And not since 1997's The Castle have I laughed so loud and so often during an Aussie flick, and it's about time too. Where Crackerjack was a feel-good belly laugh Bad Eggs takes extra care of spoofing the very genre it draws on. It's serious yet outrageous almost simultaneously. The films two larrikins (I mean stars, respectively) are somewhat to blame for the great momentum and balance between laughs. The pay off is in Mick Molloy and Bob Franklin's slipshod slapstick style banter that never goes too far or bows too low. They have great comic timing and know how to handle the material. Also, stand-up comic turned Actress Judith Lucy projects much of her infamous persona into the mix of comedy. She works well as an icebreaker between the two dufus leads (again, said in respect). This camaraderie amongst comics/actors pretty much goes for everyone involved in the project. There's a distinct laidback Aussie feel to Bad Eggs topped off with classic Aussie humour (in an indicative Martin/Molloy approach) that fans will more than likely soak up.

The only coil that might see audience's put off balance is that the story is much more plot-driven than most will be expecting. For some, they just want to sit back and guffaw. For others that like a bit more for their buck you will find it ultimately rewarding. With noticeable appearances from some of the greats of Australian cinema, Bill Hunter, Robin Nevin, Marshall Napier and Steven Vidler keep it all in safe hands (and that's comforting to know). Great performances from Alan Brough who plays the stations computer nerd and Shaun Micallef as the Victorian Premier. Micallef was the only one who played it quite differently than you would imagine. The jazzy music by David Graney and Clare Moore in the Bad Eggs Band is just brilliant. But don't take my word for it, go and see it for yourself. Bad Eggs is a barrel of laughs.

Score - 4 out of 5

Just Plain Dumb

[Petticoats · 6 November 2003]

Lately the quality of films coming out of Australia has been dreadful, but this movie has taken the Aussie Film industry to even lower depths.

What a poor film. The acting is dreadful on all accounts with most of the cast looking decidedly disinterested in the whole affair. Is the industry so short of talent that they now have to resort to actors who are totally unsuited for their parts? Mick Molloy as a copper just never washed one little bit for me. The production crew should hang their heads in shame. Most of the scenes have been way too overdone, milked for all they are worth and poorly edited. The grading is hopelessly uneven and in one scene there seems to be a sound sync problem. Then there are other technical sins. I mean really, I thought we were long past the days when boom mikes could be seen at the top of the screen. Every where you look there are the telltale signs of a rushed, poorly researched photoplay. One glaring unforgivable scene shows a van that is supposed to be holding 12 heavily armed men sitting high on it's springs and obviously unladen to even the most unobservant watcher. On the writing side, the swearing is way overdone even for the Australian Language. The previous reviewer states that the film is star studded and uses the "hit" word to describe the casts previous film "Crackerjack".

Crackerjack was a disaster, even in this country. So it's hardly an accolade. C'mon....Lawn Bowls. Oh yeah, they were queuing up out of the cinema doors for that one. Finally on the directing, well all I can say is "Roll over Stefan Elliot, you will soon be joined in that wilderness you have occupied since Woop Woop". Will someone please take a big cattle prod to the Aussie Film industry. It's been in a coma for far too long.

Loved It

[aussieburger · 9/10 · 31 July 2003]

Tony Martin's first film. Was very funny ... anyone who likes any of the following will enjoy this flick:

D- Gen, The Late Show, Castle, Crackerjack ...etc.

Only problem with the film was that the plot was hard to follow at stages but this was ok I guess since it would have made it even more predictable then it was already !

I read an interview somewhere with Tony Martin that said this film was inspired by the early Inspector Clouseau (pink panther) movies with were my favourite ! I can see similarities between the 2 with the 2 main characters being funny while everyone else and everything around them being serious :)

9/10

More good laughs from half the old D-Gen gang

[speckled10 · 9/10 · 14 July 2003]

** possible minor spoilers **

Going in to see Tony Martin's Bad Eggs you would immediately start to draw comparisons Egg's star Mick Molloys own Crackerjack - which features much the same leading cast (inc. Molloy, Judith Lucy & Bill Hunter) and seemed to both hatch from the same Egg - literally - despite denials by both Martin & Molloy.

Regardless, this movie - like Crackerjack - is a good honest laugh without being the 'great' Aussie comedy movie that these guys have the potential to reproduce (particularly if they ever all teamed up creatively on the same project with the Working Dog half of the D-Gen as well - yes we can dream!).

Martin for the most part puts aside his incredible ability for sharp satire and observational humor & parody which I am a huge fan of and delivers quite the 'serious' comedy about a corrupt police dept exposed by two fairly inept cops (Molloy & Franklin who is very nicely suited to his role as Molloys sidekick).

The film delivers some of the best laughs when Martin pulls out the visual gags in the style we know and love - such as the hilarious AMW scene and the opening 'car chase' scene, at other times the hunor is a little flat but the saving grace is the storyline which - albeit a rather contrived imitation of many other cop/spy thrillers inc. MI for one - keeps the interest going through the more serious moments.

So much like Crackerjack this is a very enjoyable romp that should serve well on repeated viewings - and of course is a goldmine for long-time D-Gen & Melbourne comedy fans who'll love seeing more Mick & Jude action (but no pash this time!) and great fun spotting cameos from the likes of John Harrison (who swore he'd never do D-Gen related comedy *ever* again!), Gina Riley, Pete Smith, Gracie & Sancia from the radio show days.. and a hilarious but all-to-short appearance from the great man Martin himself - doing a wonderful WWTBAM ripoff ..

All up I would say this movie is funnier at it's funniest than CJ, but the latter is the more consistent movie throughout .. both are definately DVD goers after you've seen it at the cinema - when you consider the mass of goodies T.Martin is rumored to be putting together for the release, and much like CJ the commentary alone could be just as (if not more) entertaining than the movie !!

what was going on?

[j_mousey · 2 August 2003]

this film had some laughs, not bad, but not great. the major letdown however was the storyline, i sat in the theatre for the majority of the film wondering what the hell is going on, having occasionally the few laughs that had no real relavance to the storyline itself. the ending was rather poor, so was the character development, and so was the acting (actually, considering most of the lead characters in the film werent actors, you can say they did a decent job).

if you have a spare 10 bucks in your pocket and dont know how to spend it, and you feel like you have nothing to do in the next 3 hours, then go see this movie. otherwise, save the money for another movie.

Very Entertaining

[Maxta · 8/10 · 31 July 2003]

While it doesn't quite match the best of Australian comedy, Bad Eggs is a fantastic second movie from Mick Molloy. The story here is complete and well thought out, a rarity for comedies like this.

Mick Molloy, Judith Lucy and Bob Franklin all played superb roles, never slipping out of character while their individual comic genius kept us laughing. Special mention must go to Alan Brough for his part as Northey, he owns the screen every time he's on and some of the best laughs are his alone.

All up a great addition to Australian comedy, and another success for an aussie comics transfer to the big screen. Well done Molloy. 8/10.

Someone has to say it(!)

[mrnda · 17 August 2003]

For the intended movie goers of Bad Eggs....Be forewarned. It's a movie with highly course language used in it. The "F" word was used so many times that you become almost immune to it. But it does make you squirm a bit,... not for the faint hearted.