Review of Bandslam (2009) by Corey R — 23 Aug 2009

Bandslam is an almost shockingly engrossing and thoughtful movie recalling some near-classics as ?Revenge of the Nerds?, ?Say Anything?, ?Breakfast Club? and most especially ?High Fidelity.? The presence of Disney regular Alyson Michalka and Vanessa Hudgens always the marketers to frame this as ?High School Musical 4? which puts asses in the seats but short-changes what is actually a more far more substantial and less sticky sweet concoction.

Also it deals with a few dark themes, their presence makes the happy ending feel earned and you?ll leave the theater elated, repeating some dialog gems and humming David Gates ?Everything I Own.? The only major shortcoming are the voices of Hudgens and Michalka who are plenty tuneful for the ballads but lack the pipes that balls out rock numbers require.

However, if they weren?t in the film no one would have seen it so the compromise may be worth it.