Introducing the Dwights

In a lot of ways, the Australian indie Introducing the Dwights seems to be playing along with the same themes as Little Miss Sunshine—a dysfunctional family struggling to get its collective act together, with oddball observational humor liberally applied to make the whole thing seem breezy. It’s not entirely successful in its modest ambitions. In this dramedy, an overworked single mother takes a timeout from her nightclub comedy act to try to cockblock her virginal son’s coming-of-age story as the musician ex-husband flounders about uselessly. Throw in a developmentally disabled brother to spice up the proceedings and add the necessary dose of pathos. I suppose watching a showbiz-type arc from charming to vaguely horrifying within this context might be entertainment for some, but here it really isn’t all that interesting. An odd balance of whimsy and vitriol.