Bandslam

Director: Todd Graff Todd Graff

Overview

A gifted young singer-songwriter recruits the new kid in town to manage her fledgling rock band in this music-driven comedy starring Vanessa Anne Hudgens and Gaelan Connell. Charlotte Banks (Aly Michalka) has what it takes to be a true rock star, and with the battle of the bands approaching she's determined to win. Her chief opponent in the upcoming competition is none other than her egotistical ex-boyfriend Ben (Scott Porter). Ben may be cocky, but there's no denying his charisma when he takes the stage. With a little help from new arrival Will Burton (Connell), Charlotte's band begins to develop a unique sound and starts writing some original songs. Meanwhile, as Will and singer/guitarist Sa5m (Hudgeons) start to make a love connection, disaster strikes, and the band is forced to choose between conceding the competition or standing tall and finally living up to their true potential.

Product Details

Release Date:	03/16/2010
UPC:	0025192044762
Original Release:	2009
Rating:	PG
Source:	LIONSGATE - 600000-AEC LGE
Region Code:	1
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	1:51:00
Sales rank:	37,517

Special Features

Bandslam: Making the band; Audio commentary with director and cast; Deleted scenes with director's introduction; Honor sciety - music video; Vanessa Hudgens - musical performance

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Vanessa Hudgens	Sa5m,Actor
Gaelan Connell	Will Burton
Scott Porter	Ben Wheatly
Lisa Kudrow	Karen
David Bowie	Himself
Charlie Saxton	Bug
Tim Jo	Omar
Ryan Donowho	Actor
Lisa Chung	Kim Lee (Keyboards)
Elvy Yost	Irene (Cello)
J.W. Wright II	Dylan Dyer (Glory Dogs Guitar)
Blair Bomar	Megan
Casey Williams	Ms. Wittenberg
Maggie Maye	Kyra 17-1
Jennifer Blair	Kyra's Friend
Zach Thatcher	Actor
Derek Cox Berg	Actor
Matt Hensarling	Actor
Cassidy Johnson	Actor,Actor
Landon Henninger	Rory
Michael Cuomo	Mr. Berry
Nathan McCray	Actor
Kai Roach	Actor
Christopher Copeland	Actor
James Hairston	Actor
Chance Morgan	Actor
Matt Moody	Actor
Marley Whistler	Actor
Wyatt Woodruff Adams	Actor
Farah White	Sa5m's Mom
Nikka Graff Lanzarone	Actor
Bobby Bones	Actor
Jonathan Rice	Stage Manager
Ryan Ciardo	Actor
Bryan Chafin	Actor
Rebecca Petro	Actor
Valin Zamarron	Actor
Candice Jackson	Actor
Manjeri Krishna	Actor
Ben Kessler	Actor
Andy Rector	Actor
Juan Lopez	Actor
Evan Butts	Actor
Chris Ritchie	Actor
Aaron Lemke	Actor
Krystal Morton	Actor
Todd Graff	Actor
Julian Riano	Actor
Joey Olivares	Actor
Joshua Montoya	Actor
Nadia Sahari	Actor
Aly Michalka	Charlotte Banks,Actor
Ryan Donawho	Basher
Junkie XL	Composer

Technical Credits

Todd Graff

Josh A. Cagan

Todd Graff	Director,Screenwriter
Josh A. Cagan	Screenwriter,Screenwriter
Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas	Producer
Ron Schmidt	Executive Producer,Producer
Marisa Yeres	Executive Producer
Nancy Nayor Battino	Casting
Jeff Schwan	Stunts

Editorial Reviews

Most anybody who was a teenager after 1955 can relate completely to the idea of rock & roll as the path of deliverance from adolescent angst. Director Todd Graff takes full advantage of this in Bandslam. The story centers on teenage music lover Will Burton (Gaelan Connell), a social misfit who shuts out the classmates he hates with the help of his omnipresent iPod. He wants nothing more than to leave his Cleveland school, and one day that dream unexpectedly comes true when his single mother (Lisa Kudrow) lands a job in New Jersey. At his new school, Will is just happy to be anonymous, but he eventually starts a tentative friendship with a fellow misfit (Vanessa Hudgens) whose name, Sa5m, has a silent "5." And when the most popular girl in school (Aly Michalka) realizes (thanks to their shared appreciation for the Velvet Underground) that Will has spectacular taste in music, she gets him to manage her rock group so they can defeat her ex-boyfriend's band in Bandslam, an annual battle of the bands contest. With a premise like that, it's hard not to draw comparisons to School of Rock. But where Richard Linklater's movie offered a ceaselessly enjoyable lesson in kiddie rebellion, Bandslam seems more enamored with the idea of rock -- and music in general -- as a source of comfort. It turns out that Will has a secret that explains why he's socially awkward, and also elucidates why he's so passionate about music. And Bandslam works in large part because they get the tunes right. None of the teen bands are life-changingly amazing, but they do sound both modern and good -- and the Rock Snob 101 name-dropping (from the Velvet Underground to David Bowie to the Ramones) feels right for 17-year-olds. The actors are uniformly solid. Connell is thoroughly winning as the kind of geeky charmer who would rather see a great concert than go on a date because being around a girl is far too nerve-racking. Michalka has a decent rock voice, and more than plausibly passes as the queen bee -- a role that could just as easily have gone to her co-star Hudgens, who is just too cute and appealing to pull off playing the kind of girl nobody would talk to. The main trio gets superb support from the other young actors, as well as from Kudrow, who once again proves she can make ordinary dialogue entertaining with her off-kilter delivery. Bandslam might be missing the kind of edge a movie about rock & roll should have -- there isn't anything remotely dangerous about it. But it's undeniably earnest and honest about how much music can mean to people struggling through hard emotional times, and that's a welcome idea for kids to learn and for adults to remember.