R, 2 hr. 2 min. Directed By:
Cameron Crowe. Release Date:
Sep 15, 2000. DVD Release
Date: Mar 13, 2001.
Without mincing too many words, this
is a fantastic movie. I didn’t expect to
like it this much, because having seen many, many other movies that talk about
the music scene in this particular point in history, I’ve come up with the
opinion that they’re frequently dull, and mostly surround the drug abuse that seems
to have characterized the industry for, well, forever. It helps that I have a crazy nostalgia for
this point in American history. We were
in the process of major social and political changes. We were becoming more a part of the world
around, but we still had some of our introverted innocence. We were looking at things in ways we had never
thought of before, and it was the last of the “good old days.” Don’t get me wrong, I miss the 80s, and
unlike the 70s, I’m actually just old enough to remember the 80s, the years
after ’84 at any rate. As much as I miss
the 80s, and to a lesser extent, the early 90s, I wish I’d been born a few
decades earlier so I could have seen these times.
For me, this movie was all gut
reaction. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t
think there’s much to complain about.
The cast is outstanding, and the believable tale spun by Cameron Crowe
is something wonderful to see. But, I
was so blinded by my emotional reaction to this movie that I didn’t really look
at the production or execution. I was
blinded I couldn’t even complain about Zooey Deschannel, who never fails to
give the same performance twice.
What caught my attention was the
character William Miller. His passion
for writing and music was so strong that it drove him to make it happen. While some of what happens in this tale is
pure, dumb luck, William works hard to make his dreams a reality. I’m a little envious of his drive. When I was his age (depending on which of his
ages you believe), I wanted to write professionally, and by the age he’s
wandering with Stillwater, I had completed my first novel. 280 pages that I never showed anyone. I’ve written a few more novels over the year,
mostly as a way to relieve stress. I’ve
never wanted to be in the spotlight for any reason, but maybe this will be the inspiration
that moves me towards seeing if I might be published. Based on what I’ve been reading these days,
the standards aren’t all that high, so who knows.
But anyway, back to the movie. Almost
Famous is possibly my favorite coming-of-age tale so far. It has an endearing quality to it that makes
it stick around in your head; I haven’t stopped thinking about it since I
watched it a few days ago. I wish now
that I hadn’t waited 12 years to see this for the first time.
I experienced Almost Famous. I enjoyed it. I also fell for it a little, despite the
warning in the dialogue. Oh, Fairuza Balk almost wasn't scary in this movie. Almost.
