Almanac Film: A few movies purportedly about rock and roll
Excuse me, you may have been expecting the Top Ten today. I aint writ it to my satisfaction, so you’ll have to wait a week. To while away yr time, here’s a few notes about rock and roll movies.
You may’ve seen ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, it’s an extraordinary achievement to make a dull movie about Freddie Mercury.
It’s dull in every way, the photography, direction, editing is all dead standard, bog average Hollywood movie-making. But did you expect any more? Movies and music are Twentieth Century artforms, one involves five or six people capturing a moment, the other involves hundreds working for months. Movies compress narratives into 110 minutes, songs expand a heartbeat into three.
Charlie Watts, when asked about 25 years in the Rolling Stones, said ‘Twenty years of waiting around.” A true cinematic depiction of a rock and roll band would feature 10 minutes in a pub, everyone being jovial and optimistic, 40 excrutiating minutes in a rehearsal room, the lead guitarist will lecture the bassplayer, the drummer will argue with him, 20 minutes in a van with bad farts and singer’s mix tape going loose and wrecking the cassette deck, 10 minutes hanging out and doing a radio interview, 5 minutes on stage trying to touch god, then a 15 minute drunken argument back at the crash pad cos the bassplayer picked up and rightly figures he should get the spare bedroom.
‘The Girl Can’t Help It’, 1956
Features Jayne Mansfield and beautiful film of Little Richard, Eddie Cochran, Treniers and more, the plot has nothing to do with rock and roll, thankfully, it’s a rare look at the first generation of rock and roll at their peak.
‘Wild In The Streets’, 1968
About a world where the kids take over and everyone over 30 gets sent to camp. Strangely apposite to what was happening in China at the time, tho no-one knew about that. Great theme song.
‘Blank Generation’, 1980
There’s a shot where Richard Hell walks out of CBGBs and the camera tracks him walking across the Bowery and down the street and there’s laneways and it looks a bit like Darlinghurst used to, and you think “did Johnny Thunders shoot up in that laneway?” and “which Ramone had a knee trembler there just before a show?” Useless plot but great camerawork and, 45 years later, a fascinating document of New York rock and roll.
‘Almost Famous’
Oh, look at me! I’m a movie director married to a rock star and I went on tour with Led Zep when I was 14.
There’s a couple of moments in this movie, like checking into the LA Continental Hyatt, that look good but it is mostly a ponderous wank-fest about a dull and stupid band. High point is the Lester Bangs character on the telephone in his smoky, record-filled apartment.
‘Josie And The Pussycats’
You remember the cartoon, of course you do. This is a live cartoon with a great looking band, a great theme song and a lot of fun about advertising that is ahead of its time.
‘The Commitments’
Key character is manager. “The Irish are the blacks of Europe” Great representation of archetypes, the singer, rhythm section, lead player.
’24 Hour Party People’
The best movie ever made about rock and roll, because it’s about a fan. Tony Wilson started a label so his mates could get records out. And such mates! Extra points for in-jokes that avoid pretension.
‘Down And Out With The Dolls’, 2001
Zero budget near-amateur movie from Portland that does a better job of capturing what life is like for a band than anything I’ve seen. There’s the arguments, the disasters the great gig, there’s record stores and shared houses. It’s cartoonish, just like rock bands mostly are.
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About Earl O'Neill
Freelance gardener, I've thousands of books, thousands of records, one fast motorcycle and one gorgeous smart funny sexy woman. Life's pretty darn neat.
The Girl Can’t Get It is an all-time favourite of mine, a bevvy of rock stars of the 1950’s out of the US, and a young Marc Bolan watched it at his parent’s home in dreary old London the late 1950’s, and as he went onto say, lit the fuse for him to become one of the all-time pop rock greats in the form of T Rex …. Get It ON, Bang A Gong …. thank you Earl ..
Upon reading your intro about Bohemian Rhapsody I was about to launch into a minor rant about one of my pet hates, musical biopics. Happily I didn’t need to because the post is not about that dull-as-dishwater genre. The Girl Can’t Help it is choice, and I don’t hate Almost Famous (even though I feel I should). I would have included Quadrophenia, which is much better than Tommy.
Nice work Earl, but I reckon yer gunna need a bigger list, to allow for efforts such as Fast Times (top soundtrack), 200 Motels, Dazed and Confused, Hedwig, and yes, it’s a biopic, but The Runaways was seriously impressive.
Obviously we each have our own list, but seriously, no room for Purple Rain or Spinal Tap?
Cheers
Mariska Hargitay’s documentary “My Mom Jayne” streaming on HBO Max is compelling viewer. Upended every preconception I had about Jayne Maynsfield. The chameleon nature of movie stars and celebrity. The dangers of living a hundred lives – but never your own. Also a compassionate family saga where everyone has shadow and light.
One trivia note – Jayne was a highly talented pianist and classical violinist. When she tried to show that side of her personality on TV – the night show comperes treated her like a performing seal.
(PS – I loved “Almost Famous” but then again I’ve spent a lifetime trying to escape adolescence and I’m a sap for 80’s West Coast soft rock – carn the Eagles – both of them).
Really enjoyed reading this. Thought you were very harsh on Almost Famous, a film that did more for Tiny Dancer than Scott Pendlebury has done for Collingwood. But my wife hates the film too. I loved the bit where Lester B says to young William something like “You cant be friends with them (the band)”