Rock biopic poised to 'Runaway' at box office
By James Hill III
Let's get this out of the way. "The Runaways," directed by Floria Sigismondi -- who cut her teeth directing music videos for the likes of Christina Aguilera, Muse, The White Stripes and David Bowie -- and starring Dakota Fanning, Kristen Stewart and Michael Shannon, is not the first "great" film of 2010. But this actor-driven movie does an exceptional job of presenting the underground rock scene, atmosphere and lifestyle of the 1970s while coming pretty close to "greatness."
Stewart acts pretty well -- a surprise considering she's better known as the pouty Bella Swan from the ridiculously lucrative Twilight franchise -- while portraying rock legend Joan Jett. Jett, a smoking, electric guitar-playing teenager in 70s Hollywood, stumbles upon famed record producer Kim Fowley -- a scene-stealing Michael Shannon -- at a club.
Fowley, seeing the potential in an all-girl rock band, starts building a group he thinks can be "bigger than the Beatles." But Fowley, realizing that such a group would need to capitalize on as much sex appeal as possible, notices that they're lacking a key detail: a blonde sex kitten to front the group as lead singer.
That jailbait bombshell is found in 15-year-old Cherie Currie, played by a now-16 Dakota Fanning.
I had previously considered Fanning a relatively lightweight actress, but she proves her mettle as the sensual Currie. The rebellious girl starts off refusing to sing Fowley's explicit lyrics to a song written on the spot to poke fun of her name -- the smash hit "Cherry Bomb." Before long, though, she is prancing around wearing a corset in Japan after snorting lines off the stage floor.
It is this meteoric rise and fall of Currie -- and, by extension, The Runaways -- that serves as the meat of the film, and Fanning and Stewart nail their roles perfectly, even actually singing their own versions of four Runaways songs, including "Cherry Bomb."
Currie and Jett's playful semi-romance, coupled with the rampant drugs, rock and roll excesses and Fowley's sadistic attraction to publicity, make for one bumpy ride for the band.
The five female dynamos power their way through history, money and fame, suffering dire consequences in the process.
Even with all of this, the film is not without its flaws. The rest of the band -- including guitar heroine Lita Ford -- is essentially archetypical scenery. Also, the plot and pacing both echo many preceding rock films. These blemishes, certainly not the stars, keep this film from true greatness. However, it should hold up pretty well to repeat screenings and, by the end of the year, "The Runaways" could end up as one of my favorite films from 2010, if not of the best.
Ultimately, "The Runaways" is an entertaining and very interesting peek into rock history. Fanning, Stewart and Shannon deliver excellent performances and if you have a passing interest in rock music -- or bands that the likes of Paramore and The Donnas owe an extreme debt to -- I encourage you to give "The Runaways" a chance. You won't be disappointed.
Rating: 8.0/10
Contact James Hill III at jhill@scu.edu or at (408)554-1918.