The country’s box office records were broken by a (frankly) absurd candidate in the year 2000 – one that few would have suspected, although looking back it was an absurd time - when ‘The Wog Boy’ became one of the highest-grossing Australian films of all time.
It might not have ever set critics alight, but the film, which starred and was written by Nick Giannopoulos, managed to find itself as part of the pantheon of iconic Australian cinema.
It was in some good company, too - The Castle and The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert among them – and it even spawned a sequel which arrived onscreen in 2010, ‘Wog Boy 2: Kings of Mykonos’.
Now, another decade on, a third instalment, again with Giannopoulos at the helm as a writer and star, has arrived in the form of ‘Wog Boys Forever’.
It still follows Steve ‘The Wog Boy’ Karamitsis (Giannopoulos), who, despite his best efforts, remains single and still works as a taxi driver. An unexpected guest in his cab sets in motion a chain of events for the character – alongside Vince Colosimo reprising his role as Steve’s best mate Frank - to once again show the world that “Where there’s a Wog, there’s always a Way!”.
It’s been twelve years since we last saw Steve, and things haven’t turned out the way he thought they would. He’s not dancing the Zorba anymore or doing ouzo shots. We find him all alone in an upside-down world.
It’s a rite-of-passage story for Steve, although he might be enduring a mid-life crisis, he’s still trying to find his way.
Let’s see if he can get back “that wog boy mojo he once had.”
Wog Boys Forever (MA) is showing at the Bowen Summergarden Cinema now.
Vince Colosimo and Nick Giannopoulos in Wog Boys Forever (2022)
