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The rave and dance culture gets the dramatic treatment with Australian Paul Currie's story of a struggling young musician and his girlfriend getting swept up into the scene.
Tommy (Dan Spielman) gets kicked out of London's Royal Academy of Music after presenting an experimental opera scene that involves a drug-addicted panhandler and a homeless woman. Returning to Melbourne, he reunites with his girlfriend, Alysse (Leeanna Walsman), a nurse, his mother (Kerry Armstrong) and his sister, Emma (Abbie Cornish).
While Tommy continues to work on his opera, Emma dies from an overdose after being supplied some overly pure drugs by Trig, a Pan-like local dealer associated with club and rave promoter and music producer, Hector (Andrew Howard). Tommy learns that Alysse was involved with Emma's death and mistakenly thinks Alysse has been cheating on him and he leaves her. In trying to learn more about his sister's life, he meets her boyfriend, a smalltime DJ manning a record shop where Emma also worked, and is fascinated by the turntables and club scene.
Working on his mixing skills, Tommy discovers the popular audience he couldn't find pursuing classical music, and partly to escape the sadness over Emma's death, he throws himself into this new genre. His unique sensibilities make him a hit and he makes the acquaintance of Trig, who also works as a VJ. Meanwhile, Hector meets Alysse and becomes infatuated with both her looks and voice, insisting she's the next big thing.
What follows is a downward spiral as Alysse gets more involved in the drug side of clubland while pining for Tommy, and Tommy begins to regret leaving her. The triangle culminates in a tense rooftop scene—the film's true climax—followed by a rather silly retribution with Trig and Tommy ganging up on Hector at an outdoor rave.
Currie's skill elevates the story from melodrama to something approaching art, with creative camera work and a perfect soundtrack. The anti-drug message might come across hard at times, but not so bludgeon-like as, say, Traffic. But his affection for the dance scene and music is sincere, and he provides a more balanced presentation than Go! Currie might not be the voice of his generation but he's certainly a welcome addition to the chorus.