“Almost Famous” (Cameron Crowe, 2000)

“Almost Famous” Succeeds as another genuinely authentic period piece from director Cameron Crowe. The film is set as the golden age of rock and roll comes to an end in the late 1970’s. “Almost Famous” takes us on the road with a young rock critic named William Miller as he discovers what it really means to be a critic in this chaotic business.

William is on tour with the fictional rock group “Still Water,” a band going through the motions of up and coming stardom. Crowe molds a cast of actors into the perfect example of what a 1970’s rock band would be. “He’s the enemy,” is a repeated quote by the band toward William for being a critic. To “Still Water,” a critic is an unrelenting spy set out to show the world who they really are. In a sense that’s what William is doing, but his genuine love for the band gives him a bias that is anything but malicious. Crowe continually poses a question throughout the film; can a rock critic truly be unbiased toward a band?

Legendary rock critic Lester Bangs mentors William throughout the film. Portrayed by Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Bangs serves as the answer man to all of William’s troubled questions about dealing with rock-stars and Rolling Stone editors. Bangs tells William after another somber phone call, “ Aw, man. You made friends with them. See, friendship is the booze they feed you. They want you to get drunk on feeling like you belong.” Bangs is trying to teach William that being a critic means separating himself from the good times and realizing the actualization of what his job is, to write what he sees.

As “Still Water” slowly dissolves because of petty arguments between the band members, William begins to see them for who they really are. The climax of the film comes as their tour plane begins to nose dive. Everyone in the band frantically confesses their sins and William gets the story he’s been fighting months for, almost. Russell, the lead guitar player, tells William in the airport after their hellish flight comes to an end to, “Write what you want.” And that’s exactly what he does. Rolling Stone does a follow up with “Still Water” after William turns in his article and they deny every event that transpired. A hard lesson is learned about being a rock critic, if the band denies anything it can’t be published. A defeated William retreats to the comforts of his bedroom until a confused lead guitarist shows up by mistake. Russell sets the record straight about the Rolling Stone article and William finally gets the interview he’s been waiting for.