Scumbus

Last updated

Scumbus
Written byEd Kavalee
Directed byLuke Tierney
StarringEd Kavalee
Toby Truslove
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
Production
Producers Ed Kavalee
Christian Clark
CinematographyStefan Duscio
EditorJames Cole
Budget$60,000 [1]

Scumbus is an Australian comedy film written and produced by Ed Kavalee. The film stars Kavalee, Toby Truslove and Lachy Hulme. It was filmed in Melbourne, Victoria. [2]

Contents

Synopsis

Tom is an eager, ambitious policeman who takes his job seriously but his career prospects are being stymied by his squad partner (and flatmate) Red, a lazy, inept cop who is more concerned with perfecting his pick-up routines. After Red crashes their squad car into a McDonald's, their fed-up boss Brett assigns the two to the station's most unpopular job – manning the 'Scumbus', a campervan that serves as a mobile police station in the seedy part of town. Tom soon discovers the scumbus' previous occupants, a pair of surly detectives, appeared to have used the van to deal in narcotics. Eager to achieve his first bust, Tom wants to report his findings to Brett but Red is unwilling to help, more concerned with meeting a woman he has met online. Meanwhile, local dealer Adam is very worried the previous arrangements he had with the scumbus will no longer be possible.

Tom tries to report to Brett but to his surprise and disappointment, the latter is not interested and orders Tom to ignore what he found. Red arrives at the home of his new lady friend, only to have his lust cooled somewhat upon discovering that she and her husband have an open marriage and that the latter wants to watch. Unhappy about his faltering career and non-existent love life, Tom returns to the scumbus that evening to find that Red has, with the aid of Tom's credit card, turned it into a party venue, complete with a couple of attractive female guests. Tom decides to let his hair down and join the festivities.

Two detectives – arrogant Bernie (who Tom is jealous of) and Amy (who Tom has a crush on) – unexpectedly arrive and Bernie immediately declares he will report them to Brett about having a party in the van. Adam angrily gate-crashes the party, demanding his stash and money that Tom found in the van. Before things get out of hand, Brett arrives. To the surprise of Tom and Red, Brett confesses that the scumbus has always been used as a place to deal narcotics, in order to keep the local drug trade peaceful and that cops manning the van have always had fun. Tom agrees to keep the truth of the scumbus a secret in exchange for Brett not reporting the party and Tom being promoted to detective. To justify the promotion, Tom needs a bust so Red volunteers to resign from the police force and he and Adam will be 'arrested' for dealing. Tom becomes a detective whilst Red embarks on a music career.

Cast

Production

The film was shot in Melbourne in only 11 days. Ed Kavalee, in addition to starring in the film and co-writing, co-producing and co-executive producing Scumbus, also largely self-funded the project and even directly assisted with the on-set catering. [3] The film's budget was $60,000 and the cast agreed to work without full salaries and instead be entitled to a share in the profits. [4]

Reception

Scumbus first aired on Channel 10 on Saturday 10 November 2012. [5]

Michael Lallo, writing in The Sydney Morning Herald , gave the film a positive review, calling it 'a comedic gem: a tightly scripted, good-cop/bad-cop story...The story hums along nicely, but it's the dialogue that stands out: a mix of rapid-fire banter and one-liners...Kavalee's movie is a win for Australian comedy.' [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Martin (comedian)</span> New Zealand comedian and writer

Anthony Francis Martin is a New Zealand comedian, writer and actor, who has had a successful TV, radio, stand-up and film career in Australia.

<i>Bad Boys</i> (1995 film) 1995 action film directed by Michael Bay

Bad Boys is a 1995 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Michael Bay in his feature directorial debut, produced by Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer, and starring Martin Lawrence and Will Smith as two Miami narcotics detectives Marcus Burnett and Mike Lowrey. The film received mixed reviews from critics, but was commercially successful and spawned two sequels, Bad Boys II (2004) and Bad Boys for Life (2020).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave Hughes</span> Australian stand-up comedian and a radio and television presenter

David William Hughes is an Australian stand-up comedian, television and radio presenter. He is known for his larrikin personality, drawling Australian accent, and deadpan comedic delivery. Hughes co-hosts Hughesy, Ed & Erin with Ed Kavalee & Erin Molan on 2DayFM and is also a guesser on The Masked Singer Australia with Mel B, Chrissie Swan and Abbie Chatfield on Network 10.

<i>Freebie and the Bean</i> 1974 film by Richard Rush

Freebie and the Bean is a 1974 American buddy cop black comedy action film starring James Caan and Alan Arkin, and directed by Richard Rush. The film follows two offbeat police detectives who wreak havoc in San Francisco attempting to bring down an organized crime boss. The film, which had been originally scripted as a serious crime drama, morphed into what is now known as the "buddy-cop" genre due to the bantering, improvisational nature of the acting by Caan and Arkin. Reportedly, by the end of filming, both actors were confused by the purpose of the movie, not knowing that they had stumbled into a successful character formula. The movie was popular enough to spawn various other successful movie franchises such as,"Lethal Weapon", "48 Hours" and "Beverly Hills Cop." Still unknowns at the time, Loretta Swit and Valerie Harper appeared in support roles.

<i>An Innocent Man</i> (film) 1989 film by Peter Yates

An Innocent Man is a 1989 American crime drama thriller film directed by Peter Yates, and starring Tom Selleck. The film follows James Rainwood, an airline mechanic sent to prison when framed by crooked police officers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lachy Hulme</span> Australian actor and screenwriter

Lachy Hulme is an Australian actor and screenwriter. He has written several films and has appeared in a number of successful Australian and US film and television productions.

<i>The Other Guys</i> 2010 buddy cop action comedy film by Adam McKay

The Other Guys is a 2010 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Adam McKay, who co-wrote it with Chris Henchy. It stars Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg with Eva Mendes, Michael Keaton, Steve Coogan, Ray Stevenson, Samuel L. Jackson and Dwayne Johnson in supporting roles.

<i>Lets Get Skase</i> 2001 film by Matthew George

Let's Get Skase is a 2001 Australian comedy starring Lachy Hulme, Alex Dimitriades, Craig McLachlan, Alex Menglet, and Bill Kerr. It is based on the life of failed Australian businessman Christopher Skase, who after the collapse of his Qintex business fled to Majorca, Spain. Skase died at around the time of the film's release. It was filmed in Melbourne and Perth.

<i>Get This</i>

Get This was an Australian radio comedy show which aired on Triple M and was hosted by Tony Martin and Ed Kavalee, with contributions from panel operator, Richard Marsland. A different guest co-host was featured nearly every day on the show and included music played throughout.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christian Clark</span> Australian actor, model, and entrepreneur

Christian Clark is an Australian actor and business owner. Christian appeared in the role of Will Griggs in the Network Ten soap opera Neighbours from 2006 to 2007 and played Penn Graham in Home and Away in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Kavalee</span> Australian comedian and radio and television presenter

Edward Robert Kavalee is an Australian comedian, actor, writer, podcaster, radio and television presenter and association football commentator. He is a recurring panellist on Network 10's Have You Been Paying Attention? with Sam Pang and co-hosts Hughesy, Ed & Erin with Dave Hughes and Erin Molan on 2DayFM.

<i>Fatal Beauty</i> 1987 film by Tom Holland

Fatal Beauty is a 1987 American action comedy thriller film directed by Tom Holland, and starring Whoopi Goldberg as Detective Rita Rizzoli, and Sam Elliott as Mike Marshak. The screenplay was written by Hilary Henkin and Dean Riesner. The original music score was composed by Harold Faltermeyer, of Top Gun fame. The film was marketed with the tagline "An earthquake is about to hit L.A. It's called Detective Rita Rizzoli."

Chandon Pictures is an Australian comedy television series that premiered on Movie Extra on 10 November 2007 and ended on 7 May 2009.

<i>Scene of the Crime</i> (1949 film) 1949 American film by Roy Rowland

Scene of the Crime is a 1949 American film noir directed by Roy Rowland, starring Van Johnson, and featuring Gloria DeHaven, Arlene Dahl, and Tom Drake. The film's screenplay, by Charles Schnee, is based on a non-fiction article by John Bartlow Martin, "Smashing the Bookie Gang Marauders". It was the only property sold by Martin to be made into a film. Scene of the Crime was producer Harry Rapf's last film of his thirty-plus year career; he died of a heart attack a week after principal photography for the film began.

Toby Truslove is an Australian film, theatre and television actor.

<i>Any Questions for Ben?</i> 2012 Australian film

Any Questions for Ben? is a 2012 Australian comedy film created by Working Dog Productions, directed by Rob Sitch. It stars Josh Lawson, Rachael Taylor, Felicity Ward, Daniel Henshall, and Christian Clark. It was written by Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner, and Rob Sitch.

<i>Its a Date</i> (TV series) Australian television series

It's a Date is an Australian ensemble comedy series which began screening on ABC1 on 15 August 2013. The eight-part series was written by comedian Peter Helliar and directed by Helliar and Jonathan Brough. The first series was produced by Laura Waters. Each episode poses a question about dating—such as 'should you date a friend's ex?'—and follows two sets of people as they grapple with the question.

<i>12 Rounds 3: Lockdown</i> 2015 American film

12 Rounds 3: Lockdown is a 2015 American action film directed by Stephen Reynolds and starring Dean Ambrose in his film debut. It is the sequel to the 2013 film 12 Rounds 2: Reloaded, the third and final installment in the 12 Rounds trilogy, and the second of six films to be co-produced by WWE Studios and Lionsgate, who distribute the film. It is the first film in the series not to be distributed by 20th Century Fox, and was released in select theaters across the United States and on demand on September 11, 2015.

<i>No Activity</i> 2015 Australian TV series or program

No Activity is an Australian comedy television series which streams on Stan. The series is about two detectives on a stakeout. The Australian series was the first commission produced for the Australian streaming service. It comes from the production company Jungle Entertainment, a partnership between Trent O'Donnell, Jason Burrows, Chloe Rickard and Phil Lloyd. It is written and directed by Trent O'Donnell with Executive Producer Jason Burrows and Producer Chloe Rickard. The first season, consisting of six episodes, premiered in its entirety on 22 October 2015. The second season was released on 26 October 2016.

<i>Romper Stomper</i> (TV series) Australian television series

Romper Stomper is an Australian television series that was released on video streaming service Stan on 1 January 2018. It is created as a sequel to the 1992 film of the same name and is set 25 years after the events in the film. The six-part series follows a new generation of fictional fascist far-left activists and their far-right, equally fascist counterparts, with the story focussing on a fictional far-right anti-Islamic group led by Blake Farron known as Patriot Blue. Jacqueline McKenzie, Dan Wyllie and John Brumpton reprise their roles from the original film.

References

  1. ↑ "Don't bother calling Mick, he'll call you." The Age, 21 January 2011
  2. ↑ "Dave's instant role in Kavalee film." Herald Sun, 2 February 2011
  3. ↑ "Ed Kavalee on the Scumbus to LA | TV Tonight".
  4. ↑ "Policing Comedy – FilmInk". filmink.com.au. Archived from the original on 15 November 2012.
  5. ↑ "10 Picks up Screenwise Grad ed Kavalee's Debut Feature Scumbus". 7 November 2012.
  6. ↑ Lallo, Michael (8 November 2012). "Steering a top cast of comedy talent". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.