New at BOP: Review: Matrix Resurrections Movie Review: Moonfall Movie Reviews: Scream The #1 Movie in America November Forecast The Many Saints of Newark October Forecast New Trivia Question All site updates Share & Save   Tweet Print this column

Patrick Fugit was generally unknown at the time and is still pretty much unknown now (though his turn in Cirque du Freak could change that). Crowe did the right thing by holding a nationwide search to find his William Miller, and Fugit's unheard of status only helps make the character more believable as an outsider, coming from nowhere at such a young age and suddenly being thrust into the zone. Fugit constantly looks like he's somewhere he doesn't belong, which must be why Crowe went for him, as William soaks in the experience, looking amazed and worried in equal measure.

That all the posters focused on Kate Hudson was no accident (the UK quad poster being the best). As the object of desire for Russell and William, and the life of every party, her character Penny epitomizes the carefree lifestyle. She does whatever she wants, knowing full well how painful it could be for her in the long run, which does make her come off childish at times. It's her relationship with band member Russell, where the acting excels, with moments where they exchange fully loaded glances that say enough for even the blind to grasp what's going on. "She pretends she doesn't care," says Band-Aid Polexia, played by a wittily ditzy Anna Paquin, summing up said moments of the act that Penny and Russell go through. Russell also pretends he doesn't care, agreeing to stake Penny in a game of Poker in exchange for $50 and a case of beer - because that's what the life of a groupie was worth to bands in the 1970s (no different today, really). She laughs it off when William reveals it to her, but the sadness is explicit for all to see... and shedding a tear equates to a moment of quality acting that earned Hudson an Oscar nomination.

Frances McDormand is excellent as William's unbelievably overprotective mother, believing that her way is the right way, refusing to let her children listen to their own music and celebrating Christmas in September, on a day when it won't be commercialized. Any scene where she has a phone in her hand is guaranteed to raise a laugh.

As a forewarning of what is to come, Bangs tells William, "You're gonna have friends like crazy, but they're gonna be fake friends. They're gonna try to corrupt you. But you can not make friends with the rock stars. These people are not your friends. These are people who want you to write sanctimonious stories about the genius of rock stars." What people often forget, but which this film addresses, is that the journalist must stay home and write instead of hanging out with their friends. William obviously makes friends with Stillwater, and as he sits in front of a blank page unable to write, he starts going through pictures taken on the tour, missing everyone. As for "the genius of rock stars," William may think that he's suddenly in with the cool crowd, but even the band members are worried about attaining that status themselves. "Just make us look cool," Russell tells William of the feature he'll be writing. Of course, when asked, "Are you cool?" just remember that the true cool guys will be above the question.

The soundtrack features songs that were actually in the film, from the likes of Led Zeppelin and David Bowie; none of that "inspired by" stuff, with Crowe letting certain tracks explain the overall mood. The most over-the-top example is Elton John's Tiny Dancer, played and ultimately sung along to on the tour bus; a scene carefully designed to make you feel all warm inside and to think of Almost Famous whenever you hear Tiny Dancer in the future. That this single scene has been uploaded onto Youtube, receiving over one and a half million views, shows that Crowe has succeeded.

Almost Famous works because the writing is platinum gold, capturing what it must have been like to be there with its collection of surreal and emotional moments, sometimes both at the same time. A turbulent plane trip produces uneasy laughs, but is a major turning point, showing how everything can change in a matter of minutes. Also you can't make a film like this without a band arguing over something, reaching Spinal Tap levels of hilarity during the unveiling of the Stillwater T-Shirts.
Almost Famous had everything going for it. Critics wanted to marry it, their quotes were on the posters, and it was actually easily accessible. Taking $32.5 million in the US and $14.8 million internationally, it ammased a worldwide take of $47.3 against a $60 million production budget. However, Almost Famous became famous on DVD, notably after Crowe released his "Bootleg Cut", with an extended version of the film running 40 minutes longer. As one of the best comedies I've missed out on, it's highly recommended you don't make the same mistake.

Continued:       1       2