Review: The Runaways
Posted March 19, 2010 12:00 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The Runaways is a biopic of the ’70s all-girl teenage rock band that consisted of members Joan Jett (guitar, vocals), Cherie Currie (vocals), Sandy West (drummer), Lita Ford (guitar), and Jackie Fox (bass). Going for a lighter approach and geared towards a younger audience it’s less informative than more serious biopics like Ray or The Doors but makes up for it by being an entertaining, stylish film that still gives some insight into how the band came to be, and how they handled (or didn’t handle) their success.
Focusing mainly on Jett (Kristen Stewart) and Currie (Dakota Fanning), the film gives us a peek into their lives before they met, quickly moves to their introduction, their manager Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon) training them how to be raunchy on stage to appeal to a male audience, and finally to them writing their smash hit “Cherry Bomb” and going on tour. We see them open for larger bands in North America and then sell out stadiums in Japan. This was all between 1975 and 1977 and the girls were constantly drinking, doing drugs, having sex, and living it up (even though they were only in their mid-teens). Currie burned out fast because of this lifestyle and left the band just after they hit it big.
Fanning and Stewart are great in their portrayals of Jett and Currie (and yes, they do sing), but I was disappointed that the rest of the band was hardly mentioned. Ford (played by Scout Taylor-Compton) went on to become a solo star in her own right and it would have been nice to see more of her side of the story. West (played by Stella Maeve) is considered to be one of the first female drummers, an interesting story on its own. She died of cancer in 2006, which, unfortunately, is not even recognized in the end credits. Fox is left out of the film completely, instead represented by a character named Robin (Alia Shawkat). This could be due to the source material – Currie’s book Neon Angels – or because the studio didn’t want the film to be lengthy. Either way, it would be nice to see something done on the rest of the girls at some point.
Writer-director Floria Sigismondi is best known for her work in music videos such as Marilyn Manson’s “The Beautiful People” and David Bowie’s “Little Wonder”. This is her first feature film and her artistic vision is present throughout, with much of the film having rich contrast, a rock n’ roll shooting style, and tight editing. The concert scenes especially rock, thanks largely to Sigismondi knowing how to direct them properly. They’re gritty and loud and at times I felt like I was there, rocking out in the crowd, instead of sitting in a theatre watching it onscreen.
Although it has some problems, fans of the band should be pleased with the outcome of The Runaways. Stewart and Fanning’s roles are a vast departure from the traditionally innocent ones they typically play, and fans might be surprised to see them swearing, smoking, doing drugs, and having sex – and should be warned that this is rated R for a reason.
**** out of 5 stars
Rated R
Cast: Dakota Fanning, Kristen Stewart, Michael Shannon
Directed by: Floria Sigismondi
Official Site IMDb
brian.mckechnie@citynews.rogers.com
ALSO OPENING THIS WEEK: Cooking With Stella, The Bounty Hunter, Repo Men, Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Top image: A scene from The Runaways. Courtesy E1 Films.
