Paul Byrnes, writing in the "Sydney Morning Herald", referred to "Crackerjack" as 'a good-natured comedy...in which there's a nostalgia for our lost honour...This nostalgia for an Australia of mateship and communal spirit is the film's main surprise. This is a broad comedy with a televisual style - including some dreadful mugging to camera - so who expected social critique as well? The movie is about Jack getting knocked off the donkey, like St Paul. Jack grows to manhood through bowls. This field of green becomes his Gallipoli, in a way, as a bunch of senior citizens teach him about honour, fidelity, and teamwork.'