"The Runaways"
Starring: Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning, Michael Shannon
Directed by: Floria Sigismondi
106 minutes
Raw in its appeal and style as a coming of age story of two lost rockers searching for identity is "The Runaways." A miscalculated effort that relies on a mediocre script and two less than stellar performances from Kristen Stewart and her counterpart Dakota Fanning.
Stewart as Joan Jett and Fanning as Cherie Currie don't quite fit into their respective roles. Stewart's performance feels more natural, and unlike Fanning, is believable with her line delivery and signature ticks. Fanning may still be caught up in the films she grew up making, rather than running with this material, her performance stalls the film. The film, written and directed by Floria Sigismondi has an MTV approach which lacks any resonance or most importantly, any nostalgic take away which should this type of film should strive for. It would have been interesting to see a more minimal approach, much like Anton Corbijn's film "Control," which chronicled the doomed rocker Ian Curtis.
We start in 1975 where rock is dominated by the likes of Bowie and others, a time where a female rock band can be exploited by any ambitious brain in the business. Enter Kim Fowley, played by the genius Michael Shannon, who literally holds this film together. Fowley is an eccentric record producer who knows all the angels and is the one who pairs Jett and Currie together. Shannon's presence alone steals scenes, he brings what every role calls for, and while his character's arc is overly repetitive, Shannon has no problem stealing this film from his female counterparts.
The script inevitably plays it safe, there are no surprises to be had. We watch the rise, the downfall, and the happy moment of semi-redemption at the end. There are times in the film where Fowley barks orders to the band to be more nasty, unforgiving, and manly while performing. If only Sigismondi got these pep talks, "The Runaways," could have become more than its final result, something that the real life Jett and Currie would probably shrug off and move on with their day.
Grade: 2.5/5
2 comments:
Interesting. Didn't take any chances, but you would have preferred a more minimalist approach? Isn't that a bit of a contradiction?
And I thought Kristen's and Dakota's performances were great. The movie could have used a better director and cinematographer but they did okay considering.
And I agree on Shannon.
I said the script plays it safe, you can see everything coming from a mile away. It can be minimalistic and not predictable at the same time..
Post a Comment