Goddess, film review

Goddess (12A). Dir. Mark Lamprell, Starring: Laura Michelle Kelly, Ronan Keating, Magda Szubanski. 102 mins

Laura Michelle Kelly in 'Goddess' (Saeed Adyani)

The Boyzone singer Ronan Keating makes his big-screen debut in an unlikely role as an environmentalist in this cheerful but cheesy Australia-set musical comedy.

He is off saving the whales and therefore neglecting his wife, Elspeth (Laura Michelle Kelly). A former songwriter and performer, she is stuck at home in Tasmania with her cutesy but badly behaved kids. Lonely, bored and spurned by the other moms, she sets up a webcam and website.

She films herself singing as she does the dishes and becomes an overnight internet sensation. Soon, she is lured to Sydney to head a new advertising campaign for a new laptop aimed at women.

The mood of the film, attractively performed by Kelly and Keating, is so relentlessly upbeat and sweet-natured that it takes a while to notice that it is actually dealing with some queasy themes, voyeurism, exhibitionism and family breakdown among them.