Translating gibberish

• Published date: 18 June 2022

Director: Armagan Ballantyne

Cast: Jackie van Beek, Damon Herriman, Jemaine Clement, Ian Zaro, Chelsie Preston Crayford, Ghenoa Gela, Byron Coll, Yvette Parsons, Chris Bunton, Jesse Griffin

Rating: (R16) ★★★

While it may not be the laugh riot promised by the trailers, the likeable New Zealand/Australian co-production Nude Tuesday (Rialto) garners big points for originality and audaciousness; its premise of a bored, forty-something couple, who attend a spiritual retreat in the great outdoors to breathe life into their marriage, is given a huge conceptual boost with the decision to have all the dialogue spoken in gibberish.

Shot in New Zealand, the opening scene takes place on the fictional island of Zobftan, not far from Hawaii, where the inhabitants speak Zobftanlik, a sort of Scandinavian/Eastern European hybrid improvised on set by the actors, based on writer/star Jackie van Beek’s screenplay. It might seem like an odd choice, but it...