This is a
mostly-all-right film about a neat little slice of rock history I hadn’t known
about. Nice premise and some good
acting, even if the story as a whole is a bit on the flimsy side.
In 1990,
five teenage boys from a council estate in Manchester are aspiring musicians
who idolize their hometown heroes, the Stone Roses. When the Roses make a triumphant return home
for an outdoor concert at the nearby Spike Island, the guys scheme to bring
along their demo tape and pass in on the band.
There are, you might imagine, several flaws in that plan, the first and
foremost being that they don’t actually have tickets.
Although
it’s kind of meandering, I do really enjoy the plot of the boys trying to
scheme their way into the concert – in general, I like the way everyone around
the estate is adamant that they’re going to Spike Island while simultaneously
laughing off the idea that they’re going to need a ticket to get in. It speaks to one of those touchstone moments
in music history where, for those it matters to, it seems like laws of nature
and man need not apply, because it’s just that special and not being part of it isn’t an option. I also like the camaraderie between the five
guys. They interact well and feel like a
solid friend group, even if there isn’t a huge amount of differentiation
between them – it took me about half the film to consistently tell all of them
apart, and even then, a big part of that was based on their appearance, not how
they acted.
However,
while the pilgrimage to the concert is cool to watch, a lot of the build-up
prior to that is just kind of there. It
feels underwritten at points, aimless waiting around, and overwritten at others
– the drama of the main character’s sick father, heartbroken mother, and
good-for-nothing older brother can get too overwrought. Similarly, the end of the film just sort of
unravels, rather than closing up in a compelling way.
There’s
very little Jodie Whittaker to speak of here.
Her character does have a name, Suzanne, but we know that mainly because
it’s pinned to her uniform. Whittaker
plays a waitress the guys encounter during their quest. Considering that she’s only in one scene and
really doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of the movie, we get more
characterization for her than the film would’ve needed to give, so I do
appreciate that. The guys meet her when
they’re a bit stuck, and she’s helpful without taking any of their immature
crap.
As for
the rest of the cast, the film stars Elliott Tittensor, who I best remember as
Carl from the original U.K. Shameless,
as the leader of the group and Mother of Dragons Emilia Clarke (this came out
the year after Game of Thrones
debuted) as “the girl.” Additionally,
there are brief appearances from Nick Blood (Hunter from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.,) Rob James-Collier (Thomas from Downton Abbey,) and Michael Socha (my
beloved Knave of Hearts from Once Upon a
Time in Wonderland.)
Recommend?
In
General
– I might. It’s a decent enough film,
and I like the premise a lot.
Jodie
Whittaker
– Naw. Not worth it for such a short
appearance.
Warnings
Language,
sexual content, drinking/smoking/drug use, some violence (including child
abuse,) and thematic elements.
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