Romper Stomper

The series was better than I thought it would be. It's not without it's flaws; the portrayal of the anti-fascist group as violent provocateurs was fanciful, and the acting from some of the younger cast members was so wooden it was distracting, but once you get over that, it's a pretty compelling watch. Once I started, I continued to binge. It's nicely shot and put together. I've read other reviewers criticising its pace, but I think it's spot on. It maintains a sinister atmosphere throughout and, although that can become tiresome in some cases, it works well in this series. It's disturbing, as it should be. Cast from the original film (Dan Wyllie, John Brumpton and especially Jacqueline McKenzie) are excellent and David Wenham is, as usual, brilliant. I'm looking forward to a second season.

Most of the bad reviews seem to be from idiots who didn't watch past the first episode or are too used to big production CGI nonsense, the story has many falsities such as portraying the antifa as heroes(an embarrassment and I don't know what some reviewers are thinking) but I found the whole thing quite accurate and I binged it all in one day, not as good as the original film but a very compelling story none the less, just watch til the last episode and you will not be disappointed if you have even half decent taste in films and are not some over saturated fool who needs constant action and CGI to maintain interest, it could have done some things much better and could do with some more toned writing to trim the fat but the show does a very good job at not being cliche and it keeps you interested, very impressed with the ending and hope another series is made

The show provides many insights into racism, extremism, and their modern iterations, without apology. And I applaud it for that.

While delving into the modern far right and left wing, it doesn't succumb to the false equivalency they've been subjected to in recent times. "Anti-fasc" while anarchistic and occasionally violent, are shown to be at the very least compassionate (helping a homeless child), and respectful (when asking for support, offering to let them prove themselves first). On the converse Patriot Blue are shown to use tactics not uncommon to their real life counterparts. Intimidation and demands (not requests) of loyalty are common, and brutal. While they may be two sides of the same coin, one side exudes humanity, the other, inhumanity.

Further, the media does not get off lightly, David Wenham is (as usual) excellent. His depiction of a journalist clearly inspired by, shall we just say A.B. is accurate to a tee. While generally quite eloquent, when his facade has been challenged a different kind of monster emerges, and Wenham has nailed it.

Character development, while occasionally slow, is very well done, with the occasional twist. The tragic story of the main character had me feeling exceptionally lucky, and Toby Wallace does a fantastic job with him. A relatively nuanced performance, and the almost imperceptible tics he provides the character makes you feel as though you both do and don't know this person, and that's intentional.

Confronting for some, challenging for most, this show should be judged on its' merits, as such a recommended viewing for anyone (within the age restrictions obviously). But remember, if this show makes the hair on your back bristle, ask yourself; why?

So this follows on from Russell Crowe's Romper Stomper which is a vastly underrated cult classic. Some of the original actors return and it follows the life of Andho's son as he descends into the same right wing politics.

Some of the acting (Blake and Jago) is a bit over the top but overall it is a thought provoking and scary view of Right Wing versus Anti Fac factions in Australia and how the politics of hate is encouraging these Nazi esque views.

It is a very topical and scary vision of the world we live in now.

Kane in particular is well acted and his intense performance is a masterpiece.

The score fits very well with piece and the only issue I have is the many storylines all trying to be woven together to the Ep6 finale - it feels like there could have been another 4 episodes to develop to the finale.

Overall though well worth a watch.

Be wary of low rating reviews, I saw a post on a forum that is frequented by one of the groups dramatized in this show, sending everyone over here to sign up to IMDB and hit this show with bad reviews and low ratings (suggesting accusing it of being crap compared to the movie / 'bad acting' / 'bad writing' etc.) because they didn't like their depiction in it and want to shut it down.

(After seeing this I checked most of the reviewers who have given it 1 - 2 stars, and most have no other reviews they've written on any other film/show on IMDB other than this, and only became a member to post their review here, which seems pretty suspicious to me).

Of course, this is a controversial show, clearly intentionally so, and it is inevitable that it will be attacked in this way, and it probably expected it (maybe even wanted it). But it also means a lot of the reviews here aren't genuine, which is a shame. (And I have a suspicion this review will get downvoted a lot as well!)

Anyhow, that aside. I watched this show, from beginning to end, over about three nights. I was a fan of the original movie, having been repelled/compelled by it when I was about 14, and I was also familiar with the work of one of the other directors/writers on it who made a New Zealand movie I loved a few years ago.

My honest response at the end of the sixth episode was that it was undeniably a very unique, engaging and at times shocking and powerful show, and one that I'm extremely glad I watched. I agreed with Karl Quinn's review in The Age - I can genuinely say it was one of the most invigorating pieces of television I've seen all year, Australian or not. Some of the acting was really exceptional (Lachy Hulme, Jacqui Mackenzie, David Wenham among others), some of the moments of tension downright unbearable, and some of the more sudden twists I really didn't see coming.

It felt like it got better as it went on (although for me slightly peaked in the middle in some ways), and sustained tension to the end. It also left many questions after it had finished (as it clearly intended to).

I agree with some other reviews that stated there are too many storylines - there are too many, and it became confusing trying to keep up with all of them (and the different characters they involved). This wasn't helped by the first episode trying to throw too many characters at us without really setting them all up properly, so it took a bit to ease into the show (and it took a bit to like some of the characters to be honest - not that I suppose you're meant to 'like' any of the characters in a show like this I guess, but still).

And there are some storylines that don't seem to go anywhere in the end which can be quite annoying (though certainly not unique to this show, it's one of my complaints about TV in general). Also, for my personal taste, there was just too much violence in the end - I'm into action as much as the next person, but you can become numb to it after a while. The tension was really well done, but the violence after a while just felt a bit bludgeoning. I felt there were times they could have made a more powerful statement with less violence.

And of course - Toby Wallace who plays Kane did a really strong job, although he has huge boots to fill in succeeding Russell Crowe, and I just didn't feel like his character was given enough for him to work with to try and fully hit it at that level. It seemed at times his character was an enigma in an interesting way, and at other times an enigma in a confused way.

But overall, as with the movie I found this series thoroughly compelling, and in today's social/political climate, quite brave - often excellently directed and written, with a very intense and memorable score, and a few genuine moments/twists where my mouth dropped at what they did - and what I simply didn't see coming. For me that's a sign of a great show, despite it's occasional shortcomings.

As a side note, I sincerely hope this is a sign of things to come in Australian TV. It needs more bold shows like this to compete on an international playing field, and the ambition that a show like this had is applaudable.

9 out of 10, and if they ever made a second season, I'd hunt it out. Bravo to the filmmakers - please ignore the trolls and keep going.