"Mental" is one of those "heartwarming" comedies that would feel corny if it was just churned out of Hollywood. But since the story comes from someone who actually lived it, it has a very genuine feeling -- especially since it tackles some heavy issues, such as mental illness. Not only does poor Shirley have a nervous breakdown after years of being treated horribly, but one of her daughters suffers from full-blown schizophrenia.
And despite that, it's still uproariously funny. Hogan makes the whole thing just a little too colorful, zany and over-the-top. It's a live-action cartoon. He careens us through the over-the-top antics of Shaz and the girls --they trash their neighbor's all-white house in a really gross way, Shaz beats up the donut girls, and attempt a commando-style infiltration of a shark exhibit. But Hogan never loses sight of the bittersweetness of a messed-up family, and never stops making you want to see things turn out all right.
If there's a complaint, it's that the movie sometimes doesn't seem to draw a distinction between real mental illness and being beaten down by life. Perhaps that's the point, but that's sort of like saying that Crohn's disease isn't too different from being pressured to go on a diet.
Toni Colette is absolutely brilliant as Shaz -- a surly, wild woman with a pitbull and knife in her boot, who never hesitates to kick normalcy in the face. But we get glimpses of a very troubled, sometimes "mental" woman underneath it all, and it leaves you wondering if she wants the Moochmore girls to replace something missing in her own life.
And the rest of the cast is quite good also -- Sullivan, Bethany Whitmore, Chelsea Bennett and Nicole Freeman are simply delightful as the girls, especially Malorie O'Neill's heartbreaking depiction of a schizophrenic child who isn't getting the help she needs. Gibney is heartbreaking as a sweet, gentle woman who has been beaten down by life, and finally gains some strength on her own. And... well, Liev Schrieber is just hilarious when he's being tortured by an acoustic guitar.
"Mental" is one of those rare comedies that can tackle heavy subjects without losing its wacky, wild attitude -- and Toni Colette's Shaz is worth the price of admission alone. Bring us the mechanical man!
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