Texas

While I loved the concert footage, which truly ROCKS, this film is more importantly a unique glimps into the personalities of the band members, their relationships with each other and what goes into preparing and putting on a concert. I've spent a little time with some of the band members and can honestly say that they are exactly the same as in the movie. Funny, fun loving, very nice people who take their music very seriously. As great as TOFOG's albums are, their live performances are 10 times better because they love to perform and that energy and excitment comes across well in the film.

The hidden parts of the DVD are wonderful. It's like seeing a different movie each time you watch it. Being able to change the camera angles and scenes keeps it fresh, new and exciting.

TEXAS is a raw, honest documentary with behind the scenes footage of a band on location to make a CD. Russell Crowe is a serious musician. He and Dean Cochran have been best mates since their teen years and have experienced the down side of trying to make it in the music business.

This film shows the band traveling to London, Italy and Austin Texas with some clips of Russell and Dean's early years. It's funny, raunchy (as people who have worked hard and are jet lagged frequently become)and very full of soul touching music. You will go on a journey that will give you a real insight to how difficult it is to produce music and put on a live show. You will see a portion of the sold out Austin, Texas performance that will make you wish you were there.

I loved this DVD and I hate cursing. But, the bad language is not done for shock effect, it is just how these guys interact.

There are surprises on the DVD that you have to dig deep to find but they are definitely worth the effort. Some of my friends who considered TOFOG a vanity project of Russell's are die-hard fans of the band since watching the DVD.

These are first class musicians who are not only a band but true friends that enjoy making music and are determined to give 100% to ensure their fans are entertained.

I highly recommend the DVD.

Russell Crowe was a musical artist for several years before turning to acting in 1990. He has maintained that interest, in various forms to this day. His current band, Thirty Odd Foot of Grunts, known to fans as TOFOG, has been together for about 5 years, but his lead guitarist, Billy Dean Cochran, has been with Crowe since they were teens in New Zealand. This documentary, narrated by Cochran and produced by Crowe, allows us an insiders look at the folk rock band as it gets together for a short tour in London and Austin, Texas in the summer of 2000.

Crowe is lead singer, growling out his own lyrics to an enthusiastic largely female audience. We see the guys, Cochran, Crowe, Dave Wilkens, Dave Kelly, Garth Adams and Stewart Kirwin as they perform, but most importantly, we see the off the wall comraderie of Australian based mates behind the scene. Crowe's "day job" has opened doors, increased interest and ticket sales, but also brought change. No longer able to freely mingle with fans without setting off a frenzy, he tries to remain just one of the guys. We see them kidding around in rehearsals, preparing for performance and trying to work around the demands of Crowe's movie making schedule.

This is a rude and unvarnished documentary, but great fun to watch. A tidbit of note; in the original limited release DVD, sold only at TOFOG shows in August of 2001 while on another tour, there was a glimpse of Crowe mussing the hair of Meg Ryan in London. That 2 second bit has since been removed in the Miramax release.

I bought the loaded DVD at one of TOFOG's Austin shows his past summer. It has loads of hidden features which can only be viewed using the clues provided at gruntland.com. For those of you not familiar with Thirty Odd Foot of Grunts [TOFOG] you will meet a terrific roots rock and roll band and see them preparing to perform, behind the scenes, rehearsing and kicking back.

In Texas, the language is raw and uncensored, the music rocking, the beer flowing, and the men antipodean to the core. Lead singer, song writer and driving force for the band is actor extroidinaire, Russell Crowe. But this is no vanity band. Crowe has been a musician longer than he's been an actor. This is a different and important creative outlet from his "day job", which just happens to involve creating characters on screen and winning Oscars in the process.

His music exposes the man, his thoughts, his heart and his soul. His band mates are also his friends. Lead guitarist Dean Cochran has been his closest friend since they were both teens in New Zealand.

Above all, this documentary allows us a look at how this unique band tries to pull it all together to perform and record, and the interaction with fans. It is one of the best Rock and Roll docu's I've seen. Fantastic cinematography, sound and cinema verite' style.

This documentary is a must see for any fan of 30 odd foot of grunts or Russell Crowe. It is funny, has great music, and is an honest look into the creative process of a phenomenal band. In addition to the documentary itself is all the extras that come on the dvd, such as outtakes, an additional documentary, videos, and pictures. Any tofog fan should watch Texas, if you're not a tofog fan, watch it and you will be.