Film
The Castle
- Comedy
- Light-hearted
An Australian comedy-drama about a working-class Melbourne family fighting government seizure of their beloved home near an airport. Funny without meanness, tender without sentimentality, it's fundamentally about dignity and belonging. A film that loves its characters completely and trusts you to love them too.
If you liked this
Muriel's Wedding1994
Another Australian comedy that finds genuine pathos in ordinary lives. It's about reinvention and self-worth, delivered with warmth and a killer soundtrack that makes you want to dance through your own embarrassments.
But The tone wobbles between broad comedy and something more serious, which can feel uneven if you're expecting consistency throughout.

Little Miss Sunshine2006
A dysfunctional family road trip with the same blend of humour and heart. It finds comedy in real stakes and never punches down at its characters, even when they're ridiculous.
But The quirkiness can tip into studied indie charm. Some moments feel designed to be beloved rather than honestly earned.

Hunt for the Wilderpeople2016
Another New Zealand/Australian gem about misfits versus the system. It's funny and moving in equal measure, with a genuine fondness for its characters that radiates off the screen.
But It's more of a buddy adventure than a family drama, so the emotional core lands differently than you might expect.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Castle
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Moonlight2016
Like The Castle, it's about dignity and belonging in spaces society deems marginal. It shows tenderness toward people the world doesn't look at kindly. Both say: this life, this person, this place matters.
A poetic, quietly devastating film about a young Black man's life across three decades. Shot in gorgeous naturalism, it trusts silence and presence instead of explanation.
But There's almost no plot. It's contemplative and elliptical—you have to meet it in a reflective mood rather than expecting narrative momentum.

More like this (7)
Parenthood1989
A multi-generational family saga that takes every member seriously while staying genuinely funny. It understands that ordinary people contain multitudes and contradictions.
But It's quite long and sometimes spreads itself thin trying to service too many storylines evenly.

About a Boy2002
Snappy, cynical British comedy about an unlikely connection between a man and a boy. The humour comes from real observation rather than caricature, and it's funnier than it looks.
But The sentiment sneaks up gradually, which means if you prefer comedy that announces itself clearly, you might feel wrong-footed.

The Happiness of the Katakuris2002
A Japanese family saga that's part dark comedy, part musical, entirely weird. It loves its dysfunctional household with fierce commitment despite everything going wrong.
But The tonal shifts are genuinely jarring—you'll move from family dinner to stop-motion corpses without warning. Definitely not for everyone.

Local Hero1983
A Scottish film about a Texas oilman trying to buy a village. It's wryly funny and deeply humane, finding the poetry in small-town life and stubborn resistance to change.
But The plot moves gently and the stakes are deliberately low-key, so it can feel slack if you need momentum to stay engaged.

Tootsie1982
A Hollywood comedy that's actually smart, funny, and interested in character. The gender politics hold up, the romance feels earned, and it never wastes a scene.
But It's a product of its era in ways that occasionally show. Some of the comedy beats land differently now than they did on release.

The Straight Story1999
David Lynch directing an old man on a lawnmower across Iowa. It's a meditation on dignity, community, and the space between people—funny without ever making jokes at anyone's expense.
But It moves at the exact speed of a man on a lawnmower. If you want plot propulsion, you will not find it here.

Shoplifters2018
Both films center domestic life and family bonds forged outside convention. Both ask: what makes a family a family? Both answer: love and loyalty, not law or property or social approval.
A Japanese film about a family of shoplifters living in a cramped apartment, bound by love rather than blood. It's observant, sad, and occasionally hilarious in how it watches them navigate the world.
But The story moves with deliberation, and the 'plot' involves crime treated as mundane survival rather than thrilling. Don't expect catharsis or tidy resolution.

People
Cast
Michael CatonDarryl Kerrigan
Anne TenneySal Kerrigan
Stephen CurryDale Kerrigan
Anthony SimcoeSteve Kerrigan
Sophie LeeTracy Kerrigan
Wayne HopeWayne Kerrigan
Tiriel MoraDennis Denuto
Eric BanaCon Petropoulous
Charles TingwellLawrence Hammill
Robyn NevinFederal Court judge
Costas KiliasFarouk
Bryan DaweRon Graham
Directing
- Anny BeresfordContinuity
- Rob SitchDirector
- Annie MaverFirst Assistant Director
- Susannah MottSecond Assistant Director
Writing
- Jane KennedyScreenplay
- Rob SitchScreenplay
- Santo CilauroScreenplay
- Tom GleisnerScreenplay
Production
- Jane KennedyCasting
- Susannah MottCasting Assistant
- Michael HirshExecutive Producer
- Debra HermanProducer
- Jenny DaviesProduction Accountant
- Pauline HirshProduction Assistant
- Kaylene GermanProduction Runner
- Megan SpencerProduction Runner