These reviews were given by Moviegoers after recent film festival screenings...they were posted on various web-sites...I hope they don't mind me posting them here.<br /><br />1) I thought this movie was a great depiction of many small town people and their lives when they turn teenagers. Many are so used to being around that small net of people, that they find it difficult to pack up, leave, and follow their own dreams. The Garage does a great job at portraying the life of a kid that is stuck between leaving or staying, and the choice might seem easy to some of us, but we are able to see that it is very difficult. I truly enjoyed this film and could not take my eyes of the screen....<br /><br />2) This is a great movie about the relationship between a father and his adult son. It focuses on the dilemma of the son, Matt, who plans to break away from his home life and find his place in the world. Many things keep happening that keep him from leaving home. He becomes motivated to leave when his friend, who was supposed to go with him, dies. This enables the young man to decide to leave home. Through out the movie, the central theme was the father-son relationship. Not only was the main character struggling to tell his father that he wants to leave home, but, the father of his best friend is violent toward him. The end of the movie wraps this theme up in a way that I thought was unique. It ends by showing the viewer Matt's relationship with his son in the future. Although it is a bit lengthy, the movie is a delightful, yet sad, story about breaking away from the family and finding one's own path.<br /><br />3) The Garage. The fact that the story is a coming of age story set in 1970's small town Texas should not deter you from seeing this film. The cinematography is wonderful, the acting is great, and if you think seeing another film of this genre is close to torture, then you really should see what Carl Thibault has created, breathing fresh, new life into the genre. This film took the SoCal award for Best Screenplay  catch this film at a festival near you to see why<br /><br />4) This film succeeds on so many levels, it is difficult to review. Perhaps it is best to start with what it does not do. While telling an "every town" coming-of-age story, the film never succumbs to cliché. Somehow it invokes the "automobile as vehicle of redemption" in such a visceral, physical way that you can smell the grease and feel it on your skin. The same film on video would have been a disappointment. The grain of the film itself adds texture. I immediately thought of a dozen people from three generations who I feel need to see this movie--for the simple but heartrending truths it tells, for the reminiscences it stirs, for the music (original and fantastic), and for the acting (surprising given the youth of the actors). Bravo--an American classic.<br /><br />5) Saw this feature film at a festival in CA earlier this year. I really enjoyed it. Growing up in a small town, I could definitely relate to the main character and what was pushing/pulling him. For me, there was something nostalgic about the viewing experience. In my mind, this film is deserving of its many accolades. Bravo indeed.<br /><br />6) Writer/Director Carl Thibault has made a really good film. I just watched this movie at the San Joaquin Film Festival and it blew me away. The basic story is not new. Set in a small town in Texas in the late 70s, the main character, Matt, must make the most important choice of his life. He can stay buried in the going-nowhere job of mechanic in his father's run-down auto repair garage or he can escape to the outside world and rise above the dead end life he's destined for. This film is beautifully photographed, acted, directed, written, edited, and scored. It never has that feel of low budget. Thibault's excellent film is independent cinema at its best. I actually give this picture 4 and a half stars. (out of 5 stars)