One by one the characters are introduced. Paraded in single file like freaks in a side show.

First there's Joey, perched precariously on the gable of the school hall, headmaster doing his best(?) to talk him down, while his classmates chant jump, jump, jump.

And then there's the inlaws! Pillars of society! Salt of the earth! The classic Aussie suburban terrorists.

The holidays turn out to be one long disaster-strewn day after another with Joey copping a hiding from his soon-to-be brother and Bruno copping a hiding from almost every angle.

Albert, Joey's long lost great-grandfather shows up unexpectedly and simply steals the show.

Warren Mitchell puts in a gem of a performance as the one-legged old reprobate who turns out to be a soulmate for young Joey.

Together they steal a car, beat-up a bar full of skinheads and run off to sea in the middle of the night.

Not your average bunch of biscuits!

From the start, the tone of the next hour-and-a-half is obvious, but it's pulled off so skilfully that there are very few dull moments in the whole silly romp.

I came away with a sore head from laughing and in fact couldn't stop the fits of silly giggling for hours after.

This is a shining example of what you might be inclined to call typical Aussie humour. Full of crude, rude, silly, slapstick, English-style lampooning but with that unique, lovable-larrikin Aussie accent.

The cinema was, unfortunately, almost empty for the session I attended so when word gets around that this is truly a must-see film, I'll be back for a second dose, just to soak up the audience atmosphere.

If you laughed at The Castle, you'll wet yourself for Crackers.

In case you hadn't noticed, I've rated Crackers six out of five shamrocks.