Comedies are generally a hit and miss affair and unfortunately for Strange Bedfellows, it nicely sits in the miss category which makes it a crying shame considering the two aussie stars in it. The story revolves around two straight middle aged men who create an elaborate hoax to make the tax department believe that they are actually in a same sex relationship in order to save money.

Add in Paul Hogan and Michael Caton and you would probably think that this comedy would be a rip roaring time but unfortunately the gags are clichéd, the story is slow and characterisation is sorely lacking any substance. Caton plays the Ralph Williams, the straight (as in comedy) man for Paul Hogan’s Vince Hopgood who is he clichéd country farmer and is recently divorced.

To make their lie more credible, both begin to change the way the small country town of Yackandandah interprets them and eventually… except the tax man believe that they are both gay… even though Ralph has a child of his own. They even go King Cross in Sydney in order to visit the gay nightlife to teach them how to be gay and eventually they start acting like an old married couple as they argue about everything. Sounds funny? Sometimes. There are a few moments in Strange Bedfellows but the majority of the time, you’ll be cringing in your seat from the overtly blatant gay references.

The video quality is quite acceptable with its almost country Australian palette as everything looks a little washed out but it actually suits the country aspect of the story well. The audio is nothing spectacular and don’t expect to be blown out of the water but the dialogue is crisp and clear. Special features? Zippo!

In conclusion, Strange Bedfellows would have probably been a hit in the 1980’s but as a modern comedy, it lacks that true atmosphere and unfortunately ends up being a barrel of clichés and ridiculous scenarios. Then you have both Caton and Hogan acting quite over the top as they attempt to homosexualise their characters which proved that the movie world has gone far beyond these cheap tricks.

Ho-hum!