As far as films about Dolly Parton impersonators go, “Seriously Red” is a pleasant enough, offbeat choice. The film, which would have benefited from a rewrite or two, gets a huge boost from the performance of Australian actor Krew Boylan in the role of Red, a young Realtor who loses her job and decides to try to make it as a Dolly Parton impersonator.
When Red, who has loved Dolly since she was a child, puts on one her many Dolly wigs and a bra stuffed with socks, something magical happens. Mousy Red becomes superstar songwriting genius Dolly, singing and dancing about life and love and enchanting audiences. As a child her audience might have been her friend and most ardent supporter Francis (Thomas Campbell), a young man, who is clearly in love with Red and takes Red in when her mother insists on renting the converted garage in which Red has been living.
At about the same time, Red performs at a drag club where the audience is full of impersonators of such celebrities as Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, Elton John, George Michael, Amy Winehouse and Madonna. Also in the audience is former Neil Diamond impersonator Wilson (Bobby Cannavale), an agent putting together a show he’s staging in a posh Hong Kong hotel.
The screenplay, also by Boylan, inevitably addresses the issues of identity, especially when Red falls in love with a fellow performer Kenny (Daniel Webber), who is a Kenny Rogers impersonator. The film features multiple versions of “Jolene,” including one in Chinese, and is sprinkled with Dolly sayings such as, “It’s hard to be a diamond in a rhinestone world.” Red’s mother Viv (Jean Kittson), meanwhile, remains steadfastly (and generically) skeptical of her daughter’s desire to have a career in showbiz.
“Seriously Red” might be called a rhinestone version of film about a diamond Dolly Parton impersonator. Boylan writes herself a scene in which Red/Dolly has a panic attack when Francis shows up at Sunday dinner with a new girlfriend, who is a lawyer, a subject we don’t really return to later. Executive producer Rose Byrne appears in the film as an almost unrecognizable Elvis impersonator with whom Red has a one night stand and who is left unhappily in the dust when Red’s career takes off.
The conflicts Boylan sets up in the story – romantic, professional, individual – do not amount to much. We know that “Dolly” and “Kenny” are wrong for one another. Kenny seems to have some some dark private back story. But screenwriter Boylan keeps most of it out of view.
Still, with the exception of one big moment on stage that is poorly thought out and conspicuously lacking in seriousness, “Seriously Red” is often fun. Director Gracie Otto, a graduate of Sydney Film School, has a good eye for comical visuals. Red standing in a line of Dolly impersonators is not a sight I will soon forget. Boylan, who has little chemistry with Webber, is a much better actor than writer. Cannavale, who is married to Aussie Byrne, has a nice moment mimicking Diamond singing “I Am…I Said.” The film’s (tacked on?) ending will knock some people for a loop since there was absolutely no hint at such a development.
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'SERIOUSLY RED'
Rated: R (for sexual content, nudity and some language)
Running time: 1:44
How to watch: VOD
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