It doesn't happen very often, but every once in awhile, I see
a movie that's so good that when I leave the theater, I really
feel like I've been somewhere else for much longer than two hours.
Well, folks, this is one of those movies. Wow...
"Almost Famous" is about a bright, wide-eyed 15-year-old kid who winds up on the road with an up-and-coming rock band in 1973, on assignment for Rolling Stone Magazine. It may sound far-fetched, but in fact, writer/director Cameron Crowe really did this (pro rock journalist at 15, Rolling Stone staffer at 16)! It's an amazing experience, related quite vividly by the guy who lived it.
Semi-fictional young William Miller (Patrick Fugit) has an interesting dilemma. On the road with the band, he's making friends and fitting in for the first time, but his professional duties oblige him to keep some distance and be prepared to pull no punches in his article. The guys in the band refer to him as "the enemy". In-fighting, swilling whiskey like it was soda pop, doing all manner of drugs and swapping and banging groupies with total abandon, they are all too aware that the truth could really burn them. And yet, they take a liking to William, and wind up confiding in him, sometimes against their better judgment.
Interesting characters and great performances there are many. Patrick Fugit makes a great debut as William. Frances McDormand is in fine form as his neurotic and protective (but not a caricature by a long shot) mother. Philip Seymour Hoffman is great as real-life rock critic mentor Lester Bangs. Kate Hudson is alluring and confident, but ultimately extremely vulnerable as groupie leader Penny Lane. The band was very well cast (for a few minutes, I actually forgot that Stillwater is a fictional band), and there were numerous great small parts (including Saturday Night Live cast member Jimmy Fallon well-disguised as a seasoned band manager).
As good as the actors were, the costume and set designers almost stole the show for me. The film did a superb job of capturing the ambience of the early 1970s. (But see it anyway...)
Even if you're not partial to early hard rock, this film has something for everyone. The movie spins a great yarn, but I did find that it got a tad sentimental, later on. Not enough to significantly turn me off, though. All in all, "Almost Famous" was much more entertaining than I expected it to be. Definitely one of the best of the year.