ALMOST FAMOUS
Directed by Cameron Crowe
Screenplay by Cameron Crowe
A high-school boy, William (Or The Enemy) is given the chance to write a story for Rolling Stone Magazine about an up-and-coming rock band Sweetwater, as he accompanies it on their concert tour he learns a lot about Rock And Roll and life and love.
Okay, if you have not seen it, what are you waiting for????!!!!!
You want stars??
Here you go:
It is a Cameron Crowe film which should be enough!!
BILLY CRUDUP
FRANCES MCDORMAND
KAT HUDSON
PATRIC FUGIT
ZOOEY DESCHANEL
ANNA PAQUIN
FAIRUZA BALK
PHILIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN
JIMMY FALLON
BIJOU PHILLIPS
RAINN WILSON
JAY BARUCHEL
JASON LEE
ERIC STONESTREET
PETER FRAMPTON!!!!
If it is a revisit for you, here are some fun facts:
-The film is director Cameron Crowe's semi-autobiographical account of life as a young Rolling Stone reporter. The actual group Crowe first toured with was The Allman Brothers Band. Gregg Allman distrusted him, and kept asking if he was a narc. Crowe was in a near-fatal plane crash while traveling with The Who. The character of Russell Hammond is based on Glenn Frey of Eagles. All these stories were part of the movie.
-Penny Lane asks William if he'd like to go to Morocco with her. He says, "Yes... ask me again." According to Cameron Crowe, "ask me again" was Patrick Fugit stepping out of character and asking Kate Hudson to repeat her lines for another take. Crowe liked the take as-is and kept it in the final cut.
-Stillwater's songs were written by Peter Frampton (who also had a small part in the film), Cameron Crowe, and his wife Nancy Wilson of the rock band Heart, a fact indicated early in the credits. The music acknowledgments credit Russell Hammond and Stillwater as if they were real authors and performers.
-There actually was a band called Stillwater in the 70s though the band depicted here is not them. They agreed to the use of their name after reading the script.
-The roles of Russell Hammond and Penny Lane were originally written for Brad Pitt and Sara Polley respectively. Polley dropped out to work on her own project, a low-budget Canadian movie. According to Crowe, Pitt worked with Crowe for months before finally admitting, "I just don't get it enough to do it." Kate Hudson was originally cast as William's sister.
- At the age of 18, director Cameron Crowe wrote the liner notes to the "Frampton Comes Alive!" album by rocker Peter Frampton. Frampton returns the favor here by acting as a music consultant for the film.
-Penny Lane dancing in the empty, debris-strewn Cleveland auditorium is Cameron Crowe's favorite scene in the movie (MINE ALSO AND THE TINY DANCER SCENE!!!!)
-When Frances McDormand's character reprimands Billy Crudup's character over the phone, Crudup was actually was on the other end of the line.
-At the end of the movie, when Russell is in William's bedroom, he stands in front of a poster of the Allman Brothers' "Live at the Fillmore East" album cover. A reference to the real band.
-Produced in 92 days
-Brittany Murphy, Mena Suvari, Anne Heche, Neve Campbell, Jenna Elfman, Bridget Moynahan, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Rose McGowan, Chloë Sevigny, and Rebecca Romijn auditioned for the role of Penny Lane.
-The scene where Russell gets electrocuted on stage is based on an incident where Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley was severely shocked on stage during a concert on Dec 12th, 1976 at the Lakeland Civic Center in Florida.
-The real life Lester Bangs died of a drug overdose at a fairly young age. Eerily, Philip Seymour Hoffman, who portrays him in this film, would later die of a drug overdose also.
Well there are your fun and not so fun facts!!
What I cannot figure is how Kate Hudson did not win Best Actress for this role!! Marcia Gay Harden for Pollock??!! Really?
Watch this and I rest my case. It is the perfect combination of Actress and Role. With some Mad Hatter thrown in:
ALMOST FAMOUS I give 4 1/2 out of 5 stars almost perfect (That Ending UGH!).
15 years ago this year!
Available for streaming and rental on Netflix.
I will leave you with the Tiny Dancer scene!!!! You Are Home!!!
From the shadows as always thanks for your time.
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