Film review: Mental

Rated M.

Toni Collette reunites with Muriel’s Wedding director PJ Hogan and shines in this quirky comedy as Shaz, a hitchhiker with a chip on her shoulder. Picked up by absent father Barry (Anthony LaPaglia) to look after his five wacky daughters, her unusual methods teach them to embrace their differences. As the title suggests, Mental is all kinds of crazy, filled with a raft of characters trying to come to terms with their own insanity. It’s a captivating flick, set in the purgatory of small-town suburbia.

Rating: 4/5

Laura Weaser