Yahoo Serious might have come and gone, but his strain of witless, campy farce continues to dog Australian filmmaking. It drives the sophomoric whimsy of the overrated Baz Luhrmann, and it hits bottom in the career of the once-promising Alex Proyas (Dark City, The Crow). Freddy (Kick Gurry) leads his band before thousands of screaming worshippers in a stadium concert. Surprise! It’s just a fantasy, and Freddy is merely making feeble love to his shrewish bass player, Tanya (Pia Miranda). That’s about as clever as Garage Days gets in its attempt to capture the wacky world of bad Sydney rock musicians. Other bandmates include drummer Kevin (Andy Anderson), who dabbles in narcissism and drugs, slovenly and inept manager Bruno (Russell Dykstra), and moody and possibly insane lead singer Joe (Brett Stiller), whose girlfriend Kate (Maya Stange) takes a shine to Freddy. They’re all puerile and charmless, and the film’s brutally asinine humor (Bruno breaks wind a lot, and Joe tries to prove to pregnant Kate that he’d be a good father by carrying a melon around in a Snugli) and its desperate attempts at style (a kind of cross between Trainspotting and The Monkees) leave you craving the subtle joys of Young Einstein. (105 minutes)
BY PETER KEOUGH
|