Posts Marked Michael Shannon

  • The Runaways Review by Tim Hayes

    July 1st, 2010

    Mr. Hayes is not only the ALMT publicist and lead editor,
    but also contributes film journalism and reviews to Critic’s Notebook and Cinemattraction.

    Tim Hayes on Theatrical Thursdays

    The Runaways (2010) dir. Floria Sigismondi

    Studio: Apparition
    Screenwriter: Floria Sigismondi
    Starring: Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning, Michael Shannon, Danielle Riley Keough, Scout Taylor-Compton, Stella Maeve, Tatum O’Neal
    Genre: Biography, Drama, Music
    MPAA Rating: R (for language, drug use and sexual content – all involving teens)
    Official Website: Runawaysmovie.com

    As if the dripping cherry on the poster wasn’t a big enough pointer, the first shot in “The Runaways” is of menstrual flow. Don’t be fooled. Yes, the hormone levels start off high and rise higher as the film charges through the formation of the famous band by young women going through all sorts of self-discovery. But it’s also a terrifically well-made fable of what happens when the right people meet in just the right places, a film that knows the difference between passion and sleaze.


    Visually the film is a knock-out. Director Floria Sigismondi has a track record of borderline-disturbing music videos for people like Marilyn Manson and Bjork, but in “The Runaways” she uses color as a weapon. Every shot is a riot of bold colorful textures and electric hues, but the style never comes close to pop-art or an ice-cream headache. Instead it energizes the film right off the screen, a visual echo of the sparks that start flying when The Runaways form.


    On top of that the acting is uniformly awesome. Kim Fowley, the moderately unhinged producer who put the band together, is played by the always brilliant Michael Shannon as a hyper-camp madman, fully able to deal with a musical crisis while banging a passing secretary or hanging upside-down from the ceiling. The fun Shannon is having can only be guessed at.


    Kristen Stewart gets top billing as Joan Jett and she’s a good physical match with the guitarist, especially when copying Jett’s head-down loping stride. But the film is based on singer Cherie Currie’s book, so it’s Dakota Fanning who gets to plot a character arc and unleash her wild-child.


    The results could burn the paint off a door frame. In perfect sync with her (female) director, Fanning cavorts in her underwear, revels in the character’s jail-bait sex appeal and flies straight off the rails, without once being demeaned by the camera or turned into a cliche. Fanning was 15 years old when this was filmed – bear that in mind when she climbs into fishnets. Bear it in mind again when the character’s mournful, fierce eyes are still with you the following day.

    July 1st,2010 Blogging, Film Reviews by Tim Hayes, Theatrical Thursdays, Video | Sections: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments