Kristen Stewart redeems herself as spitting image of Joan Jett jett
The Runaways, directed by Floria Sigismondi, is based on the story of the all-girl punk-rock group of the same name, formed in 1975 and headed by Joan Jett (played by Kristen Stewart) and Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning). The opening scene is a close-up of Cherie's first drop of hot menstrual blood hitting the even hotter Los Angeles pavement, in a strange way marking both her territory and her entrance into womanhood. The film depicts the band's rapid rise to rock n' roll fame which, like that blood, takes them by surprise and introduces them to the gritty realities of being a girl in a man's world.
Joan, a skinny, guitar-playing, Keith Richards-worshipping tomboy wants to "rock like the boys do." She meets Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon), an eccentric record producer, and pitches her idea of starting an all-girl rock group. Always looking for the next big thing, he hooks Joan up with a few other female musicians, but the band is lacking something: sex appeal. Spotting Cherie at a club, Fowley takes her on as the lead singer and sex kitten of The Runaways, marketing the band as "jailbait rock." Using a rundown trailer as their practice space, Fowley prepares the girls - none of whom are over 16 - for the cutthroat world of rock 'n' roll. He yells at them "think with your cock" and "it's not about women's lib, it's about women's libido," while throwing dog turds and empty beer cans to ready them for pissed-off crowds. Before they know it, The Runaways are signed by Mercury Records and jet off for a tour, where the rock-star lifestyle of booze, sex, and drugs begins to prove too much for Cherie.
Hardcore Jett and Currie fans will likely be critical of the clean-cut young starlets playing rockers who were far grittier than themselves. Yet critical eyes waiting for breaks in character will be disappointed: Fanning and Stewart never waver. Nobody could have done a better job.
Fitting perfectly into her 1970s apparel, we are unable to take our eyes off the eerily grown-up Fanning, who plays Currie with a mature and hypnotic confidence. Perhaps her performance is so alluring because of the potential doubling - like Currie, Fanning is a young woman coming of age in a ruthless industry known to be both sexually and economically exploitative. Kristen Stewart completely redeems herself from the awkwardness of her Twilight phase - saying little but conveying a lot, she nails Jett. It is clear that Stewart is not on-screen to "look good" but rather to act truthfully, which she does. The girls' physicality is perhaps the most impressive part of their performance; Stewart constantly stays in character with a hunched walk and boyish movements, while Fanning's on stage dancing is verbatim from actual footage of Currie.
Sigismondi, better known as a music video director, demonstrates her sharp eye for combining music with the moving image. The concert scenes are great, sometimes blurred or sped up, conveying the "caught in the moment" feeling music gives both its performers and listeners. Her shots are grainy and, like the 1970s music scene, they're not pretty nor trying to be. A particularly interesting scene to watch is when Joan's head is sticking out from a bathtub full of murky water. After a few seconds she submerges and the shot cuts to her naked body writhing in an underwater space much larger then she's actually in, evoking a grand metamorphosis or rebirth. Sigismondi takes refreshing risks like this one and pulls them off.The Runaways is definitely worth taking a chance on. The acting is great, the shots are interesting, and who doesn't like a good seventies mullet?
Joan, a skinny, guitar-playing, Keith Richards-worshipping tomboy wants to "rock like the boys do." She meets Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon), an eccentric record producer, and pitches her idea of starting an all-girl rock group. Always looking for the next big thing, he hooks Joan up with a few other female musicians, but the band is lacking something: sex appeal. Spotting Cherie at a club, Fowley takes her on as the lead singer and sex kitten of The Runaways, marketing the band as "jailbait rock." Using a rundown trailer as their practice space, Fowley prepares the girls - none of whom are over 16 - for the cutthroat world of rock 'n' roll. He yells at them "think with your cock" and "it's not about women's lib, it's about women's libido," while throwing dog turds and empty beer cans to ready them for pissed-off crowds. Before they know it, The Runaways are signed by Mercury Records and jet off for a tour, where the rock-star lifestyle of booze, sex, and drugs begins to prove too much for Cherie.
Hardcore Jett and Currie fans will likely be critical of the clean-cut young starlets playing rockers who were far grittier than themselves. Yet critical eyes waiting for breaks in character will be disappointed: Fanning and Stewart never waver. Nobody could have done a better job.
Fitting perfectly into her 1970s apparel, we are unable to take our eyes off the eerily grown-up Fanning, who plays Currie with a mature and hypnotic confidence. Perhaps her performance is so alluring because of the potential doubling - like Currie, Fanning is a young woman coming of age in a ruthless industry known to be both sexually and economically exploitative. Kristen Stewart completely redeems herself from the awkwardness of her Twilight phase - saying little but conveying a lot, she nails Jett. It is clear that Stewart is not on-screen to "look good" but rather to act truthfully, which she does. The girls' physicality is perhaps the most impressive part of their performance; Stewart constantly stays in character with a hunched walk and boyish movements, while Fanning's on stage dancing is verbatim from actual footage of Currie.
Sigismondi, better known as a music video director, demonstrates her sharp eye for combining music with the moving image. The concert scenes are great, sometimes blurred or sped up, conveying the "caught in the moment" feeling music gives both its performers and listeners. Her shots are grainy and, like the 1970s music scene, they're not pretty nor trying to be. A particularly interesting scene to watch is when Joan's head is sticking out from a bathtub full of murky water. After a few seconds she submerges and the shot cuts to her naked body writhing in an underwater space much larger then she's actually in, evoking a grand metamorphosis or rebirth. Sigismondi takes refreshing risks like this one and pulls them off.The Runaways is definitely worth taking a chance on. The acting is great, the shots are interesting, and who doesn't like a good seventies mullet?
The Runaways, regisserad av Floria Sigismondi, bygger p� ber�ttelsen om den all-girl-punk-rock gruppen med samma namn, bildades 1975 och leds av Joan Jett (spelad av Kristen Stewart) och Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning). �ppningsscenen �r en n�rbild av Cherie f�rsta droppe varm menstruationsblod tr�ffa �nnu hetare Los Angeles trottoaren, p� ett konstigt s�tt m�rkning b�de henne territorium och hennes intr�de i kvinnlighet. Filmen skildrar bandets snabbt �kande rock n 'roll ber�mmelse som, liksom att blod, tar dem med �verraskning och introducerar dem till tr�kiga verkligheten av att vara en flicka i en mans v�rld.
Joan, en mager, gitarr-spel, Keith Richards-dyrkande tomboy vill "klippa som pojkar g�r." Hon m�ter Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon), en excentrisk skivproducent och platser hon id�n att starta ett all-girl-rock gruppen. Alltid p� jakt efter n�sta stora grej, krokar han Joan upp med n�gra andra kvinnliga musiker, men bandet saknas n�got: sex appeal. Fl�ckat Cherie p� en klubb tar Fowley henne som s�ngare och k�n kattunge av The Runaways, marknadsf�ring bandet som "Jailbait rock." Anv�nda en nedsliten sl�pvagn som sin praktik plats, f�rbereder Fowley flickorna - varav ingen �r �ver 16 - f�r m�rdande v�rld av rock 'n' roll. Han skriker p� dem att "t�nka med din kuk" och "det inte handlar om kvinnors lib, det handlar om kvinnors sexlust," medan kasta hund turds och tomma �lburkar att klara dem f�r pissed off publik. Innan de vet ordet av �r The Runaways undertecknas av Mercury Records och jet ut f�r en turn�, d�r rock-stj�rniga av sprit, sex och droger b�rjar bli f�r mycket f�r Cherie.
Hardcore Jett och Currie fans kommer sannolikt att vara avg�rande f�r ren-cut unga starlets i rockers som var l�ngt grittier �n de sj�lva. Men kritiska �gon v�ntar p� raster karakt�r kommer att bli besvikna: Fanning och Stewart aldrig vackla. Ingen kunde ha gjort ett b�ttre jobb.
Passar perfekt in i hennes 1970-kl�der, kan vi inte ta v�r �gonen fr�n kusligt vuxna Fanning, som spelar Currie med en mogen och hypnotisk f�rtroende. Kanske hennes resultat �r s� lockande med tanke p� potentiella f�rdubbling - som Currie, �r Fanning en ung kvinna som kommer av �lder i en k�nd h�nsynsl�s industri att vara b�de sexuellt och ekonomiskt exploaterande. Kristen Stewart helt l�ser sig fr�n tafatthet av hennes Twilight fas - att s�ga n�got, men f�rmedlar en hel del, naglar hon Jett. Det �r uppenbart att Stewart �r inte p� sk�rmen f�r att "se bra ut" utan snarare att agera sanningsenligt, som hon g�r. Flickornas kroppslighet �r kanske den mest imponerande delen av deras resultat, Stewart st�ndigt stannar i karakt�r med en kr�kt promenad och pojkaktiga r�relser, medan Fanning �r p� scenen dansar �r ordagrant fr�n faktiska bilder fr�n Currie.
Sigismondi, mer k�nd som en musikvideo regiss�r, visar hennes skarpa �ga f�r att kombinera musik med den r�rliga bilden. Konserten scener �r bra, ibland suddig eller p�skyndas, som f�rmedlar "f�ngas i �gonblicket" k�nsla musiken ger b�de dess ut�vare och lyssnare. Hennes bilder �r kornig och liksom 1970-talet musikscen, de �r inte vacker eller f�rs�ker vara. En s�rskilt intressant scen att titta p� �r n�r Joan huvud sticker ut ur ett badkar fullt av smutsigt vatten. Efter n�gra sekunder hon submerges och nedsk�rningarna sk�ts till hennes nakna kropp vrider sig i en undervattens rymden mycket st�rre d� hon �r faktiskt i, framkalla en stor metamorfos eller �terf�delse. Sigismondi tar uppfriskande risker som denna och drar dem.
The Runaways �r definitivt v�rt att ta en chans p�. Den tillf�rordnade �r stor, skotten �r intressanta, och den som inte gillar en bra sjuttiotalet mulle?
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