Malcolm, who has autism (see "Development & Production" section below), is obsessed with trams, but he is also a mechanical genius whose modest inner-city cottage is fitted with a variety of remarkable gadgets.

For his next demonstration, Malcolm stages a near-successful hold-up of a payroll delivery, using a radio-controlled model car and trailer, fitted with a video camera, a speaker, and a gun loaded with blanks with which to threaten the guards.

The trio then devises an audacious plot to steal the weekly $250,000 cash delivery from a major bank, and Malcolm collaborates with Frank and Jude to create a set of ingenious inventions.

They dump the van in a suburban street and decamp on foot, but when the police arrive moments later and scan the area for the fugitives, they see only the back of a tram, pulling away into the distance.

In the final scene, Frank is leaving a bank in Lisbon, Portugal (another city with a major tram network) where he has just deposited the proceeds of the Melbourne robbery.

Channel Seven agreed to provide $175,000 as a presale, Film Victoria came in for $100,000, and the rest of the movie was raised from Parker and Tass mortgaging their house and via a piece of tax legislation known as 10BA.

[2] The character of Malcolm was inspired – according to the film's closing credits – by Tass' late brother, John Tassopoulos, who died after suffering an epileptic seizure after being hit by a car in 1983.

[5] As portrayed by Friels, Malcolm exhibits many traits that are characteristic of someone with high-functioning autism or Asperger syndrome, including deep-focus, obsessive personal interests.

The Leinster Arms Hotel, located in Gold Street, Collingwood, was used for filming the inside scenes at the pub Frank often frequents.

One was tricked up with two motorbikes bought from Albert Park Golf Club - these were the split cars that the stunt riders drove in the movie.

The second car was used for the actors on a caravan base towed behind a tracking vehicle generously donated for the job by Sydney grip, Ray Brown.

[7] Walter Goodman of the New York Times wrote: "Malcolm is likable, albeit a touch slow, and the same can be said of the new Australian comedy that bears his name.

"[8] Desson Howe of the Washington Post wrote: "The story line meanders like a sunstroked wallaby, the hackneyed characters fail to interact logically or even interestingly, and the gadgets are just so many mildly diverting toys.

The DVD is compatible with all region codes and includes special features, such as the trailer, a photo montage, location map, the press kit, a Popcorn Taxi Q&A, More Malcolm Gizmos and audio commentary with Nadia Tass and David Parker.