Summaries

An introspective young woman's life is upturned by the arrival of her maladjusted sister.

Based solely on a tea leaf reading, superstitious and introspective Kay believes she and Louis are destined to fall in love with each other, he who she is able to convince of the same despite he just having gotten engaged to her co-worker, Cheryl. That destiny may change with the fortunes of what she sees as the next symbol of their relationship, a somewhat sickly elder tree Louis plants in their garden for their one year anniversary. Their relationship is placed under a strain with the arrival of Kay's formerly institutionalized sister Dawn - nicknamed Sweetie - and Sweetie's current boyfriend, Bob, who Sweetie believes will help her get into show business. Kay's pleas to her father Gordon to help get Sweetie out of her house go largely ignored, as he has never judged Sweetie, who he still sees as his performing loving little girl. Gordon is facing his own issues as Kay and Sweetie's mother, Flo, has just left him on a trial separation, their issues largely stemming from his protecting Sweetie at all cost, Sweetie who had most recently been living with them.—Huggo

Looking for love and companionship in all the wrong places, Kay, a glum and superstitious working girl, falls for engaged stranger Louis based on a facial mole and a fortune-teller's advice. While struggling to navigate a rocky relationship, Kay's bizarre sister Sweetie and her important "manager" boyfriend Bob enter the picture, and just like that, Kay finds herself trapped in a weird experiment. But Sweetie is too hot to handle. Can the two couples and the sisters' estranged parents Flo and Gordon be a family and make it work?—Nick Riganas

Explores sisters, in their twenties, their parents, and family dysfunctions. Kay is gangly and slightly askew, consulting a fortune teller and then falling in love with a man because of a mole on his face and a lock of hair; then, falling out of love when he plants a tree in their yard. Sweetie is plump, imperious, self-centered, and seriously mentally ill. The parents see none of the illness, seeing only their cute child. Kay mainly feels exasperation at her sister's impositions. Slowly, the film exposes how the roots of Sweetie's illness have choked Kay's own development. Can she be released?—<[email protected]>

Details

Keywords
  • male nudity
  • female frontal nudity
  • male full frontal nudity
  • male frontal nudity
  • tree planting
Genres
  • Comedy
  • Drama
Release date Sep 27, 1989
Motion Picture Rating (MPA) R
Countries of origin Australia
Language English
Filming locations Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Production companies New South Wales Film Corporation Arenafilm Television Office

Box office

Gross US & Canada $938065
Opening weekend US & Canada $20403
Gross worldwide $938562

Tech specs

Runtime 1h 37m
Color Color
Sound mix Mono
Aspect ratio 1.85 : 1

Synopsis

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