Chopper is a knowing wink at the audience. Will audiences 20 years later still wink back?

[Extract]
Based on the autobiographical books of notorious stand-over man and self-made celebrity Mark Brandon “Chopper” Read, Andrew Dominik’s outlandish biopic Chopper detonated on Australian screens in 2000.

The film was an audacious combination of hard-hitting crime and oddball charm, perhaps reflecting Australian cinematic culture at the time.

In 1992, Romper Stomper’s ugly portrayal of neo-Nazi violence was so incendiary critic David Stratton famously refused to rate it. Later, the emotionally eviscerating The Boys (1998) forced Australians to recall the horrific murder of Anita Cobby.

Meanwhile, films like The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert (1994), Muriel’s Wedding (1994) and The Castle (1997) treated Aussie quirk as endearing. Chopper’s eccentric mood was one of reckless abandon, courting an uncomfortable laughter with its sheer audacity.