The average movie gives me 90-or-so minutes of mindless satisfaction. I sit in darkness, munching on some snacks staring straight ahead at the screen. Chomp, blink, sip, stare. Lots of films entertain me, but few entertain and inspire me. Upon first viewing, Cameron Crowe’s quasi-autobiographical Almost Famous was one of those films that was well made and lots of fun. I watched it again, this time the DVD-exclusive director’s cut named Untitled, and I was moved. Almost Famous is an honest and touching look at many big themes such as family, friendship and fandom, any one of which could have made for a great movie. Yet, like the large cast, Crowe managed to give balance to all without shorting anyone, including the audience.
The year is 1973. Young William Miller (Patrick Fugit) is an outsider amongst the crowded hallways of high school. Having skipped two grades, he’s 15, barely getting over puberty and ready to graduate a lonely soul. Sheltered by his mother, William has been raised as a mini-adult. It’s got its advantages with the main one being he’s a sweet boy. A little too sweet. Nobody takes him seriously. But he’s got a stack of records hidden under the bed like a stack of nudie mags. Led Zepplin, Neil Young, Simon and Garfunkel, they’re all there. Introduced to rock ‘n roll by his rebellious sister, William finds comfort and friendship in listening and writing about music.
William gets his break when he talks his way backstage to interview Stillwater, an up-and-coming band opening for Black Sabbath. The teenager’s wide eyes and innocent charm feed the band’s ego, leading them to build a friendship with the would-be rock journalist. When Rolling Stone magazine comes calling, William is assigned a feature-length article to document Stillwater’s rise in the industry. As a part of the story, William gets to travel on the road with the band and experience the rock ‘n roll scene firsthand. He meets many of his vinyl idols, been-around-the-block roadies, and a sisterhood of groupies with hearts called the Band Aids.
Like many of the musicians, the leader of the Band Aids, Penny Lane (Kate Hudson) becomes William’s muse of sorts. Who can blame him? She’s beautiful, funny, wise and mysterious. Nobody knows anything about her. Not her name, age, real dreams. Inside Penny is hurt. She doesn’t know herself. Her persona has taken over. Penny can put on a good face on the road because she’s simply an object used by the musicians. To them she’s a piece of furniture, not a person with a life, emotions and hope. In a way, it’s Penny’s own fault. She built the impenetrable walls. She refused to let anyone in. But like bands she travels with, the mystery is part of the irresistible intrigue. Hudson, daughter of Goldie Hawn, is beyond charming in the role. I rode the manic rollercoaster with her, squinted my eyes trying to pick her brain and couldn’t help but become enchanted by her blonde curls.
Like the title suggests, everyone in Almost Famous is just about, but not quite there. Stillwater has to come to grips with their jealousy towards one another, especially the deep rooted animosity between lead singer Jeff Bebe (Jason Lee) and unofficial public front man Russell Hammond (Billy Crudop). Penny is trying to find her way in life and find her self confidence. William is looking to become a professional, to go beyond the eyes of being a fan and getting to the bottom of the story. As a writer it’s William’s job to find the truth and until he stops worshiping his subjects, he can’t tell an honest story.
The band, the Band Aids, William and his dysfunctional family, the staff at “Rolling Stone” – there’s a large cast to keep track of. With so many characters and so many areas of potential conflict, it would have been easy to gloss over certain aspects or only go half way with the entire movie. Instead, everyone is given an equal voice and the opportunity to show growth. This is an ensemble cast where everyone shows up. While Hudson, Fugit and Crudop may be standouts, that’s not to mean that the rest of the cast slacks off.
Using personal and professional discovery as a frame for his film, Crowe shows a maturity of his own. Several of his prior films such as Say Anything and Jerry Maguire have touched on similar themes, but neither has quite the same ‘real’ feeling Almost Famous has. It might be in part that the story is inspired from the many tours Crowe saw and wrote about as a reporter for “Rolling Stone” earlier in his career. By making such a personal film and getting his life out and onto the screen, Crowe appears ready to tackle subjects outside his safe zone. His next movie, Vanilla Sky, challenged Crowe to enter the realm of science fiction. Although he didn’t seem as comfortable behind the camera with Vanilla Sky, it did show a more mature side of the 45-year-old director. After watching Almost Famous this time around, I am once again inspired to politely nod at my nay-sayers and hit the road (symbolically speaking) to chase my dreams and challenge my own safety zone.
Normally I’m a little skeptical when it comes to so-called director’s cuts. Sure they have value-added additional footage, but quite often this footage disrupts the original’s flow. If the new shots were originally part of cut scenes, it’s normally obvious why they were cut in the first place. In the case of the ‘special editions’ of the original Star Wars trilogy and the recent re-release of E.T., new scenes are added and old ones are apparently enhanced with more modern special effects. Translation: juicing a blockbuster for all it’s worth.
Not so for Untitled: Almost Famous Bootleg Cut. Although it had been a while since I saw the original version, I couldn’t tell which the new scenes were. They all fit into the flow of the film, continued to move the story forward and added to the depth of all the characters. And even if I didn’t like Crowe’s cut, it wouldn’t have mattered because unlike George Lucas and his action figure fantasies, the original cut still ‘exists.’ It is included on a second disc in the Bootleg Edition DVD.
Bootleg cut or not, both versions of Almost Famous are more than time wasters, they’re uplifting experiences that will entertain, move and inspire.
Almost Famous Gallery
