In the wake of "Rent" and "Chicago" and "Hedwig and the Angry Inch" and a whole slew of musicals on the cinematic landscape over the last few years, comes a no-budget independent rock musical on DV called "Colma." The title is the name of a town just south of San Francisco where, apparently, a lot of people are buried. "Colma" is about three friends just out of high school and concentrates on that magic summer that passes when teenagers move from childhood into the realm of adults after graduation.

I'll be honest, the first 20 minutes or so of this film are fantastic. The songs are catchy and poppy, the characters are interesting and the actors are bubbly and can actually sing well. The new-wavy keyboard-infused music reminded me very much of my favorite local 80's band in Houston, The Judys, who made punk pop songs with just keyboard, bass and drum, about subjects as diverse as Son of Sam, TV reruns and going on a date at the zoo. The first three or four songs in "Colma" sound quirky and poppy, very 00's low-fi stuff.

But eventually the songs get drab and lifeless. The first hint of disaster is a remarkably typical and dull song sang in a pub that has something to do with love. (Thankfully its lyrics totally escape me at the moment).

The characters, who start out as cute and funny, become typical and tiresome as well. Billy, who starts out the story by getting a job at a clothing store, eventually falls into a dull and typical hetero-love story about how he can't get over his ex-girlfriend. Meanwhile, Rodel, a ethnic gay teen, drags us into the muck and mire of yet another my-parents-kicked-me-out-of-the-house-cause-I'm-gay storyline that should have died with the last century. And Maribel, who starts out seeming cool and headstrong eventually just becomes confused and boring. It would be one thing if the songs and storylines here intended for us to see how drab and tiresome these plotlines were, but we feel instead that we are being fed crap that is posing as low-fi, high art. This is a film, a teenage musical no less, that can't even get angst right.

H.P. Mendoza, who plays Rodel, also wrote the script and the lyrics here. It's a shame because he really sets the piece up to be a quirky, clever modern rock musical and soon abandons his ideals for the trite and mundane. And while Mendoza may have some writing skills and a decent voice, what he doesn't have is a cute face. He is, let's face it, downright unattractive. To watch him for 90 minutes really takes a fantastic constitution. Those with a weak stomach might need numerous breaks and a bottle of Pepto to make it through his close-ups. (I'm a cruel bitch, hate me! At least I'm not asking you to look at my ugly mug for 90 minutes.)

"Colma: The Musical" ends on a nice note with two decent solos, one from Mendoza and one from Jake Moreno, who plays Billy. Sadly, the most interesting cast member, and the one with the best chops, L.A. Renigen, isn't given much to do here at the finale but look dour and utter some poetic mumbo-jumbo about growing up in the titular messed up town. As whiny and simplistic as her character is, Renigen makes us care about her.

Like Colma the city, the musical that bares its name seems a vast graveyard of wasted talent and opportunities.

Notes:

Directed, Co-Produced, lensed, and edited by Richard Wong.

Official site is http://www.colmafilm.com

Viewed in Austin in October of 2006 at The Arbor Theater as part of the Austin Film Festival.

Report Card

Script: D-

Acting: C

Cinematography\Lighting: D-

Special Effects\Make Up: B-

Music: C+

Final Grade: C-