Inspired by director Cameron Crowe's own experiences and set in the 1970s, the film follows a fifteen year old wannabe journalist who gets the opportunity to interview and go on the road with a hard living rock band.
If Almost Famous was a living breathing being, it would be Bender from the Breakfast Club. A guy from the outset that looks unbelievably cool and suave, but as you dig that little bit deeper you begin to reveal a darker side. All the while you have a fantastic soundtrack blaring in your ears as you carry out your dissection. Almost Famous boasts an array of stars and every single one of them plays their part to a tee with the director evening bathing in the glory of this film. Patrick Fugit plays William Miller an enthusiastic young rock journalist trying to succeed in the fickle world of the print media. On his journey to become an infamous Rolling Stone contributor he meets a vast range of the weird and wonderful. For example Kate Hudson enters into William's world as the eccentric goddess Penny Lane, a woman that just seems to turn every step she takes into a piece of beautiful abstract art. To be honest that makes no sense at all, but boy does it sound great and it sort of takes the form of something Penny Lane may say - Ridiculously obtuse would probably be the right description for it. Before moving on a thumbs up goes to the cast director on this particular character of Penny Lane. Perhaps he/she could have a word with the casting people responsible for Kate's role in Bride Wars.
Kate Hudson falls firmly in the stunningly cool female category if one should ever exist. She is certainly not a high flying prudish lawyer. But that is a different review altogether. The casting of Philip Seymour Hoffmann is also a delight. Hoffmann stars as rock journalist Lester Bangs, a pioneer back in his day, and a sort of oracle figure that has been sculptured out of nothing but rock and roll. His scenes are few and far between in the movie, but whenever Philip Seymour Hoffmann is on screen I always have a smile on my face. He could make watching wet paint an act of exhilarating joy even if the colour of the walls were Magnolia.
Back on point, and back on plot, the band Stillwater embrace William as one of their own and allow William access to all areas of their life on the road. And it is when the movie hits the road that things really begin to pick up. We are treated to a number of different sights and sounds of a touring band, from spats to sex, it is all on show. The film could have become overly gratuitous, however, Cameron Crowe has such a fantastic brain that he never lets the film go to these seedy depths. The film does showcase the dark and the grim sides of a touring rock band. The glamour and the glitz on stage are not reflected backstage as with many touring bands. This can be summed up in a number of scenes that are delicately placed throughout the film. Again I am not going to describe these scenes word for words as it spoils the whole film watching experience. Why anybody would want to purchase a film after being dictated the entire plot in all its bloodthirsty glory is beyond me so I will refrain from doing so. There is one scene however that is more than worth mentioning. It involves a certain Elton John song and a tour bus and that is all I am saying on that one.
I have usually ended my reviews with a statement of whether or not one should purchase the DVD. And I am not going to change for this review. This review gets the full star rating available for it, and with the help of this little site here you can get it at a ridiculously low price. Save up that little bit of cash and buy this DVD. Final note before closing would be to pick up the Untitled Directors Cut DVD. It is a two disk set packed with special features, but most importantly it contains both versions of the film. The theatre cut and as the DVD title suggests the Untitled Directors Cut of the film. The Directors cut adds roughly around 40 additional minutes of material and gives that puts that extra curl to your smile as you watch...
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15-year-old high school student William Miller (Patrick Fugit) has just won the chance to write a story about Stillwater, an up-and-coming rock band, for Rolling Stone magazine. So he joins the band on tour, makes friends with lead guitarist Russell Hammond (Billy Crudup) and groupie Penny Lane (Kate Hudson), and gets himself a ringside seat for some classic 1970s rock excesses. But with Rolling Stone demanding a story that could very well cause him to betray his newfound friends, his over-protective mother (Frances McDormand) keeping a regular check on him, and tensions within the band reaching breaking point, William finds that he must tread very carefully indeed.
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