Bandslam (2009)

A new kid in town assembles a fledgling rock band -- together, they achieve their dreams and compete against the best in the biggest event of the year, a battle of the bands.

Director:

Todd Graff

Writers:

Josh A. Cagan (screenplay), Todd Graff (screenplay)

Stars:

Aly Michalka, Vanessa Hudgens, Gaelan Connell

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Aly Michalka	...	Charlotte
Vanessa Hudgens	...	Sa5m
Gaelan Connell	...	Will
Scott Porter	...	Ben Wheatly
Ryan Donowho	...	Basher
Charlie Saxton	...	Bug
Lisa Kudrow	...	Karen
Tim Jo	...	Omar
Elvy Yost	...	Irene (Cello)
Lisa Chung	...	Kim Lee (Keyboards)
J.W. Wright	...	Dylan Dyer (Glory Dogs Guitar) (as J.W. Wright II)
Blair Bomar	...	Megan
Casey Williams	...	Ms. Wittenberg
Maggie Maye	...	Kyra 17-1
Jennifer Blair	...	Kyra's Friend

Storyline

Will centers on a high school outcast and a popular girl who form an unlikely bond through their shared love of music. Assembling a like-minded crew of misfits, the friends form a rock group and perform in the battle of the bands competition at their school.

---

Plot Keywords:

school | battle of the bands | teenager | high school | rock 'n' roll | 

---

Taglines:

Band Together

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Family | Music | Romance

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some thematic elements and mild language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [France]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 August 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Will

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,231,273, 16 August 2009, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$5,205,343, 20 September 2009

Company Credits

Production Co:

Summit Entertainment, Walden Media, Goldsmith-Thomas Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SDDS Dolby Digital DTS

Color:

Color (FotoKem)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Gaelan Connell was cast 2 weeks into the rehearsal process, with only 2 full days of rehearsal left before filming commenced.

---

Goofs

In the opening shots when he's making his "It's Monday Morning" entry to David Bowie, there's a closeup of his hands on the keyboard and his watch reads, 1:30.

---

Quotes

Sa5m: Let's... start... shredding!

---

Connections

Referenced in I Hate Everything: the Search for the Worst: Smosh: The Movie (2015)

---

Soundtracks

Pretend
Written by Loren Gold and James Renold
Performed by Scott Porter and Glory Dogs

User Reviews

A naive feel good movie for teens...

The premise of this movie is not extraordinary. I say it's pretty common.

The ingredients are: (1) a boy (of the unpopular type) who has a charisma (understands music, although he doesn't seem to play an instrument) moves to a new town because his mom got a new job (2) a single mom (of the teenage boy) (3) a girl (of the cheerleader type) who likes boy 1 (4) another boy (of the popular type this time) who use to be the boyfriend of popular girl 3 and learns to hate boy 1 (5) A public contest of some sort...

...(wait this is exactly like the ingredients of ...The Karate Kid!)...except for Mr. Miyagi! ...

and (6) Vanessa Hudgens playing a good girl (!) of the lonely type who also happens to like boy 1.

Anyway. This doesn't look or feels nothing like The Karate Kid despite my comparison! It's basically a teen dramedy. Young hopes. Young love. Friendship.

It's enjoyable enough. It has music and some (not very good) teeny songs. It may attract the younger audience but this movie is far from deep or interesting. Pretty standard stuff really.

If it's on TV or something, check it out