Do yourself a favour and see "The Wannabees" (about a gang of foul-mouthed thugs who become the country's most successful children's show), "Razzle Dazzle" (about a failing dance instructor and a bunch of fellow losers trying to coach a bunch of pre-teen girls to victory) and "Garage Days" about... as best as I can summarize... a rock'n'roll soap opera that plays out like a Hunter S. Thompson nightmare (Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas)."Garage Days" is exactly what a quirky, offbeat, rock'n'roll Aussie comedy should be: quirky, offbeat & full of rock'n'roll. Before I even get to my review, I'll mention some of the tunes on the soundtrack: AC/DC "It's a Long Way to the Top" & "High Voltage", The Cure "Boys Don't Cry", Violent Femmes "Blister in the Sun", Roxy Music "Love Is the Drug", and a particularly hilarious choreographed psychedelic scene set to Rick James "Superfreak". As in Proyas's masterpiece "The Crow", the music really sets the stage for the whole experience."Garage Days" follows a month in the life of a struggling punk-metal-grunge-pop band trying to get their one big shot. Along the way we get roped into the common themes of sex, drugs, love & friendship... and the not-so-common themes of creepy goth girlfriends, soul-sucking slot machines and talking cantaloupes. The whole movie comes at you hard & fast, like "Amelie" on crack. Quite surprising for director Alex Proyas, master of the cinematic shadows ("The Crow", "Dark City")--it's very bright and lively. If you're a fan of Proyas, you must see this side of him. Much like Tim Buton who did "Batman" as well as "Peewee's Big Adventure", Proyas proves that there's a fine line between darkness & light, and he's able to cross it seamlessly.A note for us Yanks, it helps to watch it with the subtitles because the Aussie accent can run over you like a rabid kangaroo. And some of the quips are priceless, you don't want to miss a beat. I found the script to be hilarious, the acting charming, the story suspenseful and the presentation memorable.Tastes may vary, but I found each character to be instantly likable, from "Freddie" (an odd mix of Peewee Herman and a young Christopher Walken) to "Tanya" (a punk rich girl who sports the perfect blend of hot, cute & badass), "Lucy" (Henry Rollins meets Billy Idol meets Mongo from Blazing Saddles), "Joe" (a puzzler who is best left for you to decipher), "Joe's dad" (an aging rocker who himself is more childish & clueless than his son), all the peripheral characters who did a stellar job, and then there's the guy who steals the show "Bruno" their loser manager (played by Russell Dykstra from the aforementioned "Wannabees").There aren't many well-known movies I can compare this to because it's so unusual, but if you've seen the hilarious Japanese flicks "Kamikaze Girls", "Swing Girls" or "Otakus in Love" I'd say this fits right alongside them. It also reminded me a bit of the funny Rainn Wilson flick "The Rocker", only pumped up with twice the adrenaline and totally Aussified. If you like rock'n'roll comedies, do not miss this!

Not as bad as I've been led to believe, but it left me wanting more. The jokes were there (and great at times), the script wasn't bad, the plot has some twists you don't see coming, and the music's excellent. But I found it really hard to get into the characters. I'm not sure whether it was that the characters were poorly developed, or if it was just the actors (whose performance seemed under par at a number of points throughout the film). Lucy in particular seemed to need a lot more work. Worth watching to make up you're own mind, but if you're ever in the position where you have to choose between watching the movie and listening to the soundtrack; I say go for the soundtrack.Or just watch Looking for Alibrandi. Same kind of feel, but a better movie in my opinion (and again with a pretty good soundtrack).

truly a funny musical movie. this is in the same style as spinal tap but with more character integration. why do all movies about bands always have band members sleeping with each other? everyone thats ever been in a band knows that is the kiss of death. then you throw in some mental problems, actually Joe cheating with a made up female in his mind is just hilarious. the made up character was gorgeous, and sometimes I think we each need to all have a fantasy similar to her. the characters all interact well together, the acting is quite decent. the writing, it basically was just lets use what everyone thinks about musicians anyway and roll with it. the humor saves it though. the parents coming over to have supper with their daughter and her band while they trip on acid is hilarious. anyone that has ever done drugs knows that feeling. anyone thats ever been in a band will like this movie because as bad as the writing is, it shows humor and promise and its nice to see the guy end up with the girl at the end!

Yes its Proyas, yes it's definitely brighter than his two big films constantly referenced on this page of reviews. look, i don't even really write reviews for films but i had to mention something about the trashtalking. this movie appears as fluff, it has some derivative leanings to other "rock dream" themes, but i still find it entirely original and engaging. the soundtrack pushes it towards a near musical status, and not a single song played in the background lacks reference to a scene. it's silly but i think it clearly communicates its existence as a work of love; i'm thinking that Proyas chose to be involved to maybe put a little more of his music video background on his shirtsleeve and to discard the goth chic shoebox and i applaud him for it. i mean, the snazzy closeups and slowdowns are here, but its not all special fx glitz. there's a lot of attention payed to the camera-work, the colors, the clothing - this is a labor of love, people. dark city was an excellent film, i've probably seen it fifty times, but it had a campy timelessness that many excused, choosing to see past what it lacked for its other merits...an existential sensibility, a patient sci-fi atmosphere that taught viewers new to the genre how to watch it. i won't go on about the crow but i was a pre-teen when it came out, a fact that should speak for itself. o'barr's comic could have been ruined by most any other directors, as these comic-to-films tend to turn out horrid(but look out with all eyes for SIN CITY-hotdamn).garage days is many things, but it's never really dull. i feel like most rock dream films seem to either saturate themselves in cynical failure or syrupy success, and this film decided to process both angles and consistently keep them fencing till the end credits. i'm using more words than other reviewers, but its fun if you give it a patient stab and really is brutally clever at times. don't sell it out too quick (i hear a lot of people who state that they: "couldn't stand the first fifteen minutes"), and it'll be kind in return. and sheesh, everyone's talking about the "drug abuse" in this film...it's NOT DRUG ABUSE. it's plain, good-old, post D.A.R.E. DRUG USE. it's not a huge point, no one gets killed, no O.D.'s or sweeping life assessments construed at the end of a needle. that in and of itself almost made me appreciate this film, that the drugs in it are just there as dressing, they don't represent some deep tragic lesson that Lucy or the rest need to learn. the characters are flawed, sometimes goofy or tormented or earnest or selfish...i'm cutting the rant short. i gather some people can't appreciate something like this, but it's fantastic and i'ma go watch it on cable, right now, again.10/10: open a window,put down your issue of Squee, and let the sun in.