Set in 1979, Melbourne, the film starts prior to the opening of a David Bowie concert. We are then introduced to a collection of characters, all living out of a two story place, maintained as if by a bunch of pigs. Instead we have a budding band, Dogs In Space, it's lead, Hutchence, in an impressive debut, if acting from experience as a spaced out junkie, dependant on her girlfriend, (Saskia Post) going from job to job. When asked by a stray girl, who's run away from home, "What's it like being in love?", Anna (Post) responds with a not so favourable answer-a line that became locked in my memory. This film is about 20+ sorts who live a life without rule, nor respecting who they are, blinded to the consequences of what may happen when that day of reality will wake them up, and knock em' on the head. That moment comes near the film's end, with one of them o'ding, which is a wake up call, powerful moment. Lowenstein's portrait of disassociated youth is right on the money, where it's blend of comedy and satire blend in well with the real undertone of seriousness, especially that o'd scene that hits you like a hammer. Haywood's brief appearance as a "take no s..t", chainsaw lover, I liked, but it had me trying to figure out, who he was related to here, from which would be a mind wracking waste of time of guesswork. Although it comes off as more of a comedy, the script is a sharp and originals 80's one. Some dialogue is priceless, some moments, memorably funny, like a couple involving an exam stressed student, the most sanest one living in this madhouse, who's got himself into some hot water, when knocking up a loud whale of a woman, who's tracked him down. Another one features a young social worker, who's not of the norm, where in contrast, S.O's would probably really, like to express themselves like that. The cemetery scene where Hutchence is straight, is quite a chilling opposite as to how we've seen him through the whole film, that has him basically a doped up, heroin addicted if childish pig. Of course we're afforded a shot of Lica, the first dog on space where may'be pigs, would of been a more appropriate replacement in it's title. What I loved too was the party scenes, as if the actors threw away the script and used their own pen and brush, which is how it really came across. Hutchence has created an undying, guilty Aussie pleasure of a film, of cult potential, that would be a crime in anyway to tamper with.

I had fond memories of this movie for years, but on a recent re-viewing I was put off by the obnoxiousness of many of the characters here. They all seem shallow and self-obsessed, but that is probably an accurate portrayal of this period in Melbourne music history, and my reaction most likely has a lot to do with getting older, and being less sympathetic to the follies of youth.'Dogs In Space' documents a fairly obscure but important period of Australian music history - the "little bands" scene, when punk turned weirder, artier, and generally more electronic. No other music scene in the world was EXACTLY the same, but the New York 'No Wave' era is the closest equivalent. Out of this melee came cult heroes The Birthday Party, but also many other acts that were hardly recorded, if recorded at all. This movie attempts to redress that. Director Richard Lowenstein lived in the house that inspired this story and hung out with the real band that is fictionalized here.While not perfect, this movie has a lot of energy, some great music on the soundtrack (Iggy, Boys Next Door, Eno, Gang Of Four, Marching Girls), and there's enough of interest going on to make it highly recommended to anyone curious about late 70s/early 80s music. The late Michael Hutchence (INXS) may have rough acting chops, but he exudes enough charisma to make you wonder what might have been movie-wise for him.By the way, keep an eye open for an early appearance of Noah Taylor now seen in more mainstream Hollywood fare like Tomb Raider!

This film may in fact be an accurate depiction of what it was like to live in punky late 70s Melbourne. If so, it was a very boring era. It's stylish, with an excellent soundtrack (even though they talk over the Gang of Four), but really it's hard to ignore the fact that there's about two minutes of plot. Also it's hard to make your groundbreaking No Wave band plausible when the singer looks like Garry Who from "All Together Now".

This is for when you're feeling like you need some company, but you don't feel like venturing past your doorstep. It's a good example of "slice of life" cinema, taking us through the dirty, drug-addled day-to-day life of a punk commune in 1978 Melbourne. The late Michael Hutchence was the best choice to play Sam; though the film is a true story, it seems as if the role were written for Hutchence. Several of the parts were cast with non-actors, people that director Richard Lowenstein found in public, and that only adds to the gritty realism of the film. It's almost enough to make me wish I had been there. The strong performances by Nique Needles (as Tim, a friend and bandmate of Sam's) and Saskia Post (as Sam's girlfriend) are icing on the cake. As a bonus, you won't find a much better soundtrack - Iggy Pop, The Boys Next Door (later the Birthday Party), Brian Eno, Gang of Four, Dogs In Space (Hutchence and other actors/musicians from the film) and Melbourne locals of the day.