Film Review: Almost Famous (directed by Cameron Crowe, 2000)

Almost Famous is a semi-autobiographical account of writer/director Cameron Crowe's experiences as a young journalist touring with a rock band. The story on its most basic level is a typical coming-of-age story: a young man, William Miller (played by Patrick Fugit), goes through a life changing experience while touring with the band Stillwater, and eventually both loses innocence and becomes a stronger person because of it. What makes Almost Famous much more charming than most coming-of-age films is that Crowe shows an intimacy with the film that the audience can almost feel. This isn't just a story to Crowe, this is his story, and more importantly, one of the defining times in his life. It's not often that directors get to work with such a story and can make it as intimate and interesting as Crowe does.

The story here could not be told effectively without the excellently-casted ensemble of actors and actresses who put as much energy into their characters as Crowe puts into the story. Frances McDormand, as William's overprotective mother, is equally sympathetic, antagonistic, and comedic, and easily steals the scene when she is in it. Playing William's other mentor, Philip Seymour Hoffman as Lester Bangs is another minor character standout who is as entertaining as he is wise to what William is about to experience.

Stillwater is led by lead singer Jeff Bebe (played by Jason Lee) and "guitarist with mystique" Russell Hammond (played by Billy Crudup). These characters go through a lot of growth in the film, especially Russell, through fights, injuries, and band-related trials and successes, all while William takes it all in. William's relationship with and attempts to interview Russell are major driving forces of the film, and Fugit and Crudup have some decent chemistry.

The catalyst of this chemistry is Penny Lane (played by Kate Hudson). The groupie that the entire film revolves around. She is incredibly charming and attractive, or at least that's what the characters assert over and over. She seems more like a maguffin, driving the plot and shaping the relationship between Russell and William. Maybe this isn't completely fair, and Penny's character does develop more towards the end, but while Hudson's performance is good, the audience never really sees what William and other characters find so enchanting.

Oh, and then there's William, almost forgotten in the midst of a dozen colorful characters. William is a blank slate, being shaped by the forces around him. He's earnest, naive, and all-around decent, essentially how most people see themselves (or younger versions of themselves). William is an accessible protagonist because of this but not an especially interesting one. This is not a weakness, but the main contributor to the intimate feel of the story.

Rock music in the 70s is a setting rather than theme of this film, and the soundtrack and production design create a very believable atmosphere. Crowe's wife Nancy Wilson and friend Peter Frampton created out of a few actors without much musical experience a band that is almost real. A lot of passion obviously went into Almost Famous, and this is what makes it worth watching.

Album Review: Sufjan Stevens "Illinois" (2005)

Illinois is a state known for generally being part of the mundane Midwest. Indie folk singer Sufjan Stevens completely breaks this stereotype in "Illinois." Stevens’ mix of music and lyrics creates an album that flows like the murky Mississippi past the state itself.

Rather than start off with a bang, Stevens starts by holding back his trump and gives the listener a rather mystical and almost eerie song “Concerning a UFO sighting near Highland, Illinois.” This track is very piano driven, and Stevens’ uses words like “revenant” and “in the spirit of three stars” to paint a picture of some eerie visitors from another world. Yet this reference to obscure Illinois history only scratches the surface. A further review of the lyrics reveals that it also has an application in religious allusion, as Stevens’ faith is a big part of his work. A line like, “Incarnation, three stars delivering signs and dusting from their eyes” holds a not-so-obvious allusion to doctrines of Christianity. Illinois and Stevens' personal faith weave a lyrical thread throughout the album, the latter often obscured or nonexistent, as in “Jacksonville” and “Decatur, or Round of Applause for Your Stepmother,” where the theme tends to lean towards equality and the virtue of people like Helen Keller. Conversely, religious influences are quite evident in songs like “Casimir Pulaski Day” and “Seer’s Tower,” the former about Stevens’ struggle with God over the loss of his girlfriend to bone cancer, and the latter about final judgment by Christ. Themes of Stevens’ struggles and fallibility are also found in songs like “John Wayne Gacy, Jr.” where a gentle description of the famed serial killer concludes with Stevens’ admitting his own faults and that “in my best behavior I am really just like him.”

Lyrics are made even more extraordinary by the artist’s ability to seamlessly connect them into the theme of the album musically. After the first mystical, piano-driven track, the second track, “The Black Hawk War…,” the first of a few instrumental tracks, is introduced as a buildup of many of the instruments that will be featured later on in the album. With great musical symmetry, the album is “wound down” in a similar way in “Out of Egypt…” and the two songs preceding. Other musical highlights in the album include many uncommon or unexpected instruments and styles. “Decatur” relies heavily on the banjo, giving it perhaps the “folkiest” sound on the album. “The Man of Metropolis Steals our Hearts” has the distinction of being the only song which features distorted guitar, not sounding quite like rock. “They Are Night Zombies…” has a bass line which resembles something the BeeGees would utilize. A plethora of instruments used keep the songs from all sounding the same, yet maintain a continuity and flow necessary for a concept album such as this.

Illinois brings both state history and faith alive in a fresh look that few have paralleled. The flow and balance of the album are impeccable: for every presumptuous title there is a humble lyric, for every banjo there is a distorted electric guitar. Music lovers of every genre can find something they like in "Illinois", whether it is the gentleness of a serial killer, the sadness of a lost love, or the wonder of soft drinks. Music and lyrics flow together smoothly and cleanly into a very pleasurable journey into the history of Illinois and the life of Sufjan Stevens.

Film Review: Hairspray (directed by Adam Shankman, 2007)

Camp is defined as something artificial, yet amusing, and there is no doubt that "Hairspray" is as artificial as the aerosol chlorofluorocarbons for which the film is named. The film is admittedly amusing for most of its 2 hours, with a lot of cheesy jokes and entertaining song and dance numbers. So yes, "Hairspray" (a remake of a 1988 John Waters film) is quintessential camp, but is it worth watching?

The plot revolves around Tracy Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky), an overweight teenage girl of 60s Baltimore who wants nothing so badly as to be on the local teen dance show, " The Corny Collins Show." On her way to stardom, or at least local notoriety, Tracy comes up against station manager Velma Von Tussle (Michelle Pfeiffer), whose aspirations for her daughter, Amber (Brittany Snow), run in conflict with Tracy's. It's pleasantly plump teenager versus stuck-up daughter of a domineering mother for the opportunity to be Miss Teenage Hairspray. If the stakes weren't already high enough, Tracy gets to know African-American kids at the school, and mutually impressed by each others dance moves, decides to work to integrate the show (which previously reserved one day a year as "Negro Day").

Ok, not exactly a nailbiter, but the film is more a vehicle for dance numbers set to early 60s-style music, which it delivers quite well. "Run and Tell That," is notable for containing a great solo by Taylor Parks as Little Inez. On the other hand, John Travolta and Christopher Walken (Tracy's mother and father, respectively) performing the romantic duet "(You're) Timeless to Me," while being a bit creepy, really has a bit of "old Hollywood" charm, although Travolta's singing parts were overall pretty weak throughout the film.

Overall, the cast performs well in their respective roles, and Blonsky performs her lead role with the high amount of energy the film needed. Essentially, the characters are over-the-top caricatures and could be played by anyone with some acting talent, but all the actors really did well keeping the film high-energy and interesting, which was probably due in no small part to the director.

In the end, "Hairspray" is like a caffeine pill, don't expect to get anything out of it besides energy. The plot is simple and oversimplifies some big issues, as the dancing, music, and happy-go-lucky feel are the real reason the film was made. Don't expect two hours of informed social commentary, "Hairspray" is just ridiculous fun.