Bandslam (DVD)

I have often bemoaned the fact that having a pre-teen daughter means I invariably find myself sitting in a cinema watching films that are not aimed at my demographic and for that fact alone tend to be films I wouldn't dream of paying to watch if I were going myself. "Bandslam" was one such film...I had seen a couple of reviews in the media which gave the impression this was a lacklustre movie and not one that I looked forward to viewing. That I would be viewing was never in any doubt from the moment my daughter informed me that "Vanessa Hudgens is in a new film, Mum". My daughter is Vanessa Hudgens daft, being the proud owner of ...  Read the complete review

Bandslam has a been there, done that premise to it that sounded suspiciously like School of Rock, where a bunch of young kids enter a battle of the bands type competition to try and attain rock glory, whilst having schmaltzy messages about acceptance and what not. While I wasn't totally wrong, Bandslam is far better than you'd reasonably expect, even if it's still no masterpiece and doesn't really have much appeal beyond its target audience. Will Burton (Gaelan Connell) is a big music buff, and in particular a fan of David Bowie. He is being bullied at his school and so is moved to a new one, where he meets Sam (Vanessa Hudgens), who tells him about Bandslam, ...  Read the complete review

When misfit Will starts a new school in New Jersey, he hopes that this time it will be different and that he won't be the object of ridicule. He immediately strikes up a friendship with the quiet and lonely Sa5m (the '5' is silent) but when ex-cheerleader, Charlotte, also shows an interest in him, Will can't believe his luck. Charlotte recruits Will as manager of her band in a bid to compete against her ex-boyfriend at Bandslam, a battle of the bands competition, where the winners receive a record contract. For the first time, Will finds himself enjoying his life and his new group of friends. But can this unlikely group of misfits overcome their problems and win the ...  Read the complete review

I promised my little nieces we would go to the cinema and after much debate we all agreed on Bandslam. I'm quite a fan of easy watching kid's films. In my opinion they distract our grown up worries for an hour or two and Disney are the masters of this. Naturally I was satisfied with the girl's choice, brightly coloured posters, glassy teen actors and a Disney film to boot- two hours easy watching to please the child in me. The basic jist is that Will (geeky kid) gets his wish and moves schools as such he is able to leave the bullies behind. Will has a fantastic knowledge of music and his passion draws the attention of Charlotte. Charlotte is older than Will, ...  Read the complete review

After the money making machine that is High School Musical surpassed everyone's expectations it should come as no surprise that movie makers spotted a trend to jump onto. Jonas Brothers and Hannah Montana the movie both appearing on the big screens trying to exploit the moment while it still exists. The latest movie to do the same thing is Bandslam, the story of a music competition in New York State where the winning high school band gets a recording contract and $10,000, or at least that is what the story will be perceived to be about. Unlike other movies in this genre, ok mainly the HSM ones, Bandslam is more of a high school movie with some music ...  Read the complete review