Week 8 : Almost Famous
Penny Lane is in my ears and in my eyes.
Here is a movie that makes me unconditionally happy. Watching it puts a huge smile on my face and a swell in my throat.
Almost Famous tells the story of William Miller (Patrick Fugit), a 15 year old high school student desperately trying to break into the career of journalism. Miller is wise beyond his years and is slated to graduate as a 15 year old due to skipping two years of Elementary school.
Early scenes show William being raised by his mother, Elaine (the great Francis McDormand) as well as his sister, Anita (Zooey Deschanel) in San Diego. Elaine is a college professor and wants nothing more than her son and daughter to succeed. Her values include vegetarianism, progressive politics, and a strong definition of what is right and wrong. She cannot stand commercialism, injustice, or drugs- which she most closely identifies with Rock and Roll. She is an excellent mother-though overbearing at times.
This sense of control is what forces Anita to move out of the house when William is 11 to become a Stewardess. Before she leaves William in tears on the curb while driving away, she whispers in his ear that she has left something under his bed that will set him free. William immediately goes to his room and looks under his bed to find that Anita has left him all of her records. These albums were banned in the Miller household due to the “drug content” of the music. As William looks through the stack we begin to see images that are immediately recognizable by any lover of rock. Anita has left him a treasure trove of albums: Dylan, The Jimi Hendrix Experience, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Joni Mitchell and finally Tommy by The Who. William opens up Tommy to find a small note-
“Burn a candle and listen to Tommy and you will see your future” it says. William does just that and the music transforms him in the teen (and man) he will become- this is the transformative power of rock and roll.
William meets his hero in legendary rock critic Lester Bangs (Phillip Seymour Hoffman). Bangs never once seems to care about William’s youth- his writing is excellent. Bangs explains to William that in order to be a successful rock critic he must always be honest and unmerciful and above all else he must never become friends with the rock stars. It is clear Bangs knows the scene.
“Rock stars will try to make you their friends, they will give you women, drugs, and make you feel like you are a part of the band- but they are using you,” Bangs says. He gives Miller his first assignment- 1000 words on Black Sabbath, whom happen to be in town that weekend. While Bangs succeeds in giving William some great and far reaching advice, he fails to mention more practical necessities such as how a 15 year old kid with no press credentials is supposed to get back stage to interview a rock band.
Elaine disapproves of William’s desire to be a rock critic, but she loves and supports him in a way only the best parents can. She drives him to his first concert and job and as he gets out of the car she yells “DON’T DO DRUGS!” The crowd around William laughs and mimics his mother while William, although embarrassed, agrees. We never do see William take drugs in the entirety of the picture- after all, he loves his mother.
Obviously, William is not allowed backstage at the concert. He is told by the security guard to “wait outside with the other girls.” This moment of chance will shape the rest of the movie. He sees a bunch of girls at the top of the onramp outside the stadium laughing and giggling at him. He walks up and the girls ask him to hang out with them. William informs him that he is not a groupie. This statement catches the attention of the lead groupie, Miss Penny Lane (Kate Hudson). Penny Lane explains that they are not groupies; they love the music and do not subject their bodies to the humiliation of rock stars, only their mouths. William almost instantly falls in love with her.
Soon after a rickety bus pulls up and a band gets out- they are Stillwater, the opening act for Black Sabbath. The band includes Jeff Bebe (Jason Lee) a slightly neurotic lead singer, and Russell Hammond (Billy Crudup) an amazing lead guitarist. Miller gets entry into the concert by flattering them with compliments. The band immediately takes a liking to him, and gives him access to the concert.
From this point in the movie on, William becomes a part of the band. He receives the call of a lifetime from Ben Fong-Torres (Terry Chen) with Rolling Stone magazine. Rolling Stone wants William to write a 3000 word story on Stillwater and agrees to pay for him to go on tour with the band. Rolling Stone had seen some of Miller’s work through various channels, and has no idea that William is only a 15 year old kid. William fools them with a deep voice and phrases that only an adult would say. They immediately hire him and he goes on the road.
What happens next is the stuff of legends. I have just realized that I have written nearly 1000 words on the first 30 minutes of Almost Famous. The first 30 minutes are only the setup of the movie. The movie tells the story of William-on the bus with the band, traveling across America. In his journey he witnesses what Rock and Roll must have been like in the seventies. Even though much of what he observes is off the record, he is constantly a journalist first- never drinking, taking drugs, or exploiting the women that are immediately available. When he does finally lose his virginity it is because the “band-aids” sans Penny Lane, get bored and deflower him. William is always a kid trying to be an adult, the consummate professional. We see the world thorough his eyes. It is clear that his mother raised him well.
The Golden God
The band is a real family. It is clear that they all love each other yet they also fight with the ferociousness of loved ones. The band’s central conflict involves Russell, the guitarist. Russell is beyond the remainder of the band when it comes to talent, and he knows it. When the band gets their first order of T-Shirts in from the record company, what should be a joyous occasion turns into a bitter argument. The shirts display Russell in the front and center, with the other band members faceless in the background. The image of the T-Shirt fuels a bitter argument between Jeff and Russell, causing Russell to storm out of the room.
This argument sets up one of the films best moments. Russell, desperately depressed about the argument he has had with the band, hitches a ride with some Topeka, KS high school students, gets drunk and drops acid. The night ends with Russell standing on the roof of the house, proclaiming that he is a “golden god” and screaming at the top of his lungs that he is on drugs before jumping off the roof into a swimming pool. William watches in horror and does his best to get Russell back with the band safely.
Russell gets back on the bus- no one is speaking. Elton John’s Tiny Dancer is playing on the radio. One of the band members begins to sing the song (which coincidentally summarizes the film quite nicely- particularly Penny Lane) and before the chorus begins everyone is singing. Musical sequences like this are typically done in a corny way in the movies. This one works extremely well and is quite moving. The family is reconciling through their love of the music- all arguments are small compared to the bond they have together.
The film was written and directed by Cameron Crowe, and is semi-autobiographical. Crowe was a 15 year old rock critic for Rolling Stone, and did tour with bands. Ben Fong-Torrez, Lester Bangs and other Rolling Stone staff members are real people. I am certain that many of the scenes in the movie are based in fact. Crowe is not interested in the dark side of rock and roll; this would have drastically changed the tone of the picture- for the worse. Instead, it is clear that Crowe wants to share his journey with the audience. Based on Almost Famous, he has had an incredible life. I am unsure if Crowe had a Penny Lane, but he did end up marrying Nancy Wilson from Heart, who supplies the score of the film.
Crowe has never made a bad picture. He understands youth, romance, love, and music more than any other mainstream director today. His movies all force the viewer to have deep emotional connections with the characters. He is directly responsible for Say Anything, Singles, Jerry Maguire, Vanilla Sky and Elizabethtown. Even though there are certainly some misses in that list (Singles and Elizabethtown to be precise) they are no bad films. Every project has been full of heart and soul. He is a magnificent filmmaker and an even better writer. Almost Famous is his best film, earning Crowe the 2001 Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.
What can I say about the performances? Each one of them is outstanding. Newcomer Patrick Fugit is always William Miller, the teen that loves music, loves the girl, and is in way over his head. There is a tender scene in which Miller is holding up Penny as she is passing out due to taking too many Quaaludes. She is unconscious, and he tells her he loves her and kisses her while she is passed out. I have seen few scenes this sweet.
The always great Billy Crudup is exceptional as Russell. We like his character even when he is doing horrible things because he is always true to the character. Jason Lee is in the same boat. Anna Paquin and Faruza Balk embody the free spirit of the band-aids. Frances McDormand is both loving and wise as the mother. Phillip Seymour Hoffman hits the right note as Lester Bangs- a strung out, loser fan that cannot make the music he criticizes. (There is a small throwback to the real Lester Bangs in the early scene where Hoffman talks about being on speed and drinking cough syrup- the real Lester Bangs died on an overdose of drugs and cough syrup). Zooey Dechanel is lovely playing William’s sister.
Above all the rest is Hudson’s Penny Lane. This is one of the greatest female performances of the decade. When she is on screen you want to smile. She is beautiful and complex, and it is very easy to see why our characters fall in love with her. Hudson is the real thing- and it is unfortunate that she has not been given more to work with in recent roles. To see what great acting looks like just watch the scene where William tells Penny Lane that the band sold her to another band for a case of beer and fifty bucks. She turns away, devastated, for only a moment; she smiles, with tears in her eyes she asks the kind of beer she was traded for, and laughs. This is great acting; Hudson was robbed of the Oscar that year.
The music in the film is timeless.. No one can create a soundtrack like Crowe and Wilson. In the background we hear Led Zeppelin, Yes, Thunderclap Newman, David Bowie, Simon and Garfunkel and others- all with scenes that embody what that specific song is about. The Stillwater music was made specifically for the film, but is not corny or unrealistic for the time period. We can see why this band has fans. Elton John is used twice to great effect, in the bus scene and in the emotional climax of the film. We listen to John’s Mona Lisa’s and Mad Hatters while we see William running frantically looking for the woman he loves, to find and save her. It is not important that at the end of the movie he doesn’t get the girl, only that he loved her in the first place, and that she loved him back.
I think it is important to note that Almost Famous is not necessarily a “Rock and Roll movie.” It is a coming of age film. William grows up in the course of the picture and comes to realize much about human nature, professionalism, his own values, and yes- love. What’s magical is that the movie is not just a coming of age story for William, but also Russell, Jeff, Penny, and even Elaine. There is not a character in the film that does not change for the better by the end. We smile, admire their growth, and want them to succeed. I suppose the film is also about the power of music, and friendship, and sticking to ones guns, and innocence, and being honest with yourself, and the joys of rock and roll, and the 1970’s, and idealism, and…
Review and Analysis by Shaun Henisey
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Cast and Credits:
William: Patrick Fugit
Penny Lane: Kate Hudson
Elaine; Francis McDormand
Russell: Billy Crudup
Jeff: Jason Lee
Anita: Zooey Deschanel
Dreamworks Pictures presents a film written and directed by Cameron Crowe. Music by Nancy Wilson.
Running Time: 124 Minutes. Rated R (For Language, Drug Content, and Brief Nudity.)