Amazon.com video review:
The title of The Castle refers to a ramshackle suburban tract house
so close to an airport that planes fly mere yards above the roof. Worse
than that, it's built on a toxic landfill and right beside humming
high-power lines. But to patriarch Darryl Kerrigan (Michael Caton) and
his dim-witted but cheerful brood it's home. Darryl has devoted himself
to constantly improving it with modifications like a false chimney that,
as he brags to a man sent to estimate the value of the property, makes the
house look more picturesque. When the owners of the airport serve Darryl
notice that his home is being compulsorily purchased, Darryl hires a
small-time lawyer and pursues his case all the way to the Australian
Supreme Court. This Australian box-office smash wasn't as successful as
The Full Monty in American theaters, but it has something of the
same buoyant spirit. The Castle actually plays better on the small
screen; its relationship with its characters is much like the farcical
intimacy of classic British sitcoms like Fawlty Towers, in which
crazed behavior is balanced by the genuine warmth of the whole cast. Caton
in particular is a sweet, engaging presence; Darryl Kerrigan is a fool,
but a fool with dignity, and he carries you through the movie. --Bret
Fetzer
