Bootmen

As a resident of Newcastle who is familiar with the Dein Perry story I was very interested in seeing this movie. The fact that it was shot in Newcastle and features a few Newcastle actors only increased my interest. As a local it was fantastic to see our often stereotyped city (we are the sixth largest Australian city) look as good as it does. They didn't just focus on the normal shots of the steel works or the beach, and they used references to places in Newie that only we could get. As a tap-dancing fan it was wonderful to see tap making its way into the cinema in a non-Fred Astaire way. As a movie fan it was great to note that something I assumed to be a chick-flick was actually a very blokey film with a bit of dancing thrown in. Perry and the crew have done a magnificent job in not only opening up the eyes of the world to tap-dancing they've also been wonderful in showing everyone a different side to Newcastle, while still maintaining what we are really about.

I was born in Newcastle where this film was set, and was still living there at the time when this was filmed and when released was very interested in watching it.

All I can say is that Adam Garcia was fantastic and showed his amazing dancing skills - he is also a great singer as well as shown on An Audience with Kylie Minogue last year and he is definitely such a versatile performer and one to watch in years to come.

Seeing areas of where I grew up in Newcastle was surreal and I even recognised some local faces as extras. The theatre they used when Adam's character was in Sydney was really the Civic Theatre which is located in Newcastle.

Sophie Lee has come a long way the past few years and definitely deserves higher recognition - I'm not saying this because she is also a Newcastle girl but I thought she outshone Kate Winslet in Holy Smoke and gave Toni Collete a run for her money in Muriel's Wedding and it was a shame she didn't have a bigger role.

Australian movies are really hit or miss and this is definitely a hit, along with The Dish which was released around the same time. The dancing sequence is heartpounding and this is definitely one film worth a look.

What else can I say but wow! I thought the story was really good, not at all unbelievable. I loved the whole brother thing with Sean and Mitch, they were so typically Australian! Go the flannelettes! I was really there for the dancing (and Adam Garcia) and it took a while to get there, but i loved it when he dropped the hammer at the steelworks and heard the sound and as they say, the rest is history! It was awesome when they started putting the show together, there was so much energy! And when "that thing" happened with Mitch, that was really sad and I thought it was cool that Sean kept going with the Bootmen thing. Ok, the dancing... Once again...wow! I can't believe how good they were! When they started doing the more macho dancing I was totally covered in goosebumps! And the sound of the taps on metal! It was brilliant! The energy coming out of those dance scenes was overwhelming! So 10/10 on the dancing easy! Adam Garcia... What can I say, the man's a legend! Not only is he absolutely, totally, indescribably hot! but he's an awesome (and I mean AWESOME!) dancer! I'll have him over the guy from Riverdance any day! This is the first movie I have seen with Adam in it and I hope it won't be the last! In case I haven't made my thoughts on Adam clear, here it is nice and simple... HOT! HOT! HOT! HOT! HOT! HOT! HOT! HOT!

So an easy 10/10 for the totally delicious (and talented of course) Adam Garcia! The only tiny thing that brought it down was the not-so-spectacular dancing at the beginning, but that got better half way through. But I'd rather have dancing than dialogue! In short (ha!), brilliant movie, great dancing, great actors, great body (thank you Adam!) and enough energy to blow the roof off! I wanna see it again! (and again and again and again...)

'Bootmen' is a cross between 'The Full Monty' and 'Billy Elliot' but the comparisons have to stop there, as this film contains neither the depth nor the humor of the other two. It is one of the few Australian Films I have seen that, either purposefully or not, looks more like a Hollywood flick, and perhaps coincidentally it ranks lower than most Aussie films on my list. The characters are developed haphazardly, and the tone of the movie follows a similar chaotic path, with excellent dancing not quite making up for a weak script and a feeble, unoriginal plot. Although at parts moving or amusing (or occasionally both at once) the film as a whole lacks focus, and it could be seen as a way to bring the Directors talent as a choreographer into the limelight. Impressive dancing, but otherwise nothing special, and towards the end it appears to lose touch with reality.

i actually liked the movie a lot. i happened to see it one day on IFC, and enjoyed it so much i made my Australia native fiancé watch it after he said everyone he knew that saw it back when it came out said it was crap. i thought it was very predictable...but cute still. All those little tap dancing Aussie all cute and tapping for a cause. All the drama, dead mom, dead brother, pregnant semi-girlfriend by brother, dad against his tapping, and a cynical instructor. i enjoyed it very much and would watch it again if i were to see it on. I think the idea behind the movie was very original...very funny at times. I particularly enjoyed comments about "poofters" and "root".