Fame
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Movie Reviews of Fame
Movie Review: To Live Forever
Summary: 5 Stars
After reading a few pages of Richard Yates' celebrated novel A GOOD SCHOOL I tossed it onto the cushions of my bed, rebelliously thinking that if I wanted a disjunctive, multivalent account of four years of high school, the good times and the bad, I would rather be watching the DVD of FAME. Bruno Martelli, the hero, has a supportive father and uncle, a pair of colorful taxi drivers who cheer their boy's talent though they don't fully understand his drive to make music. And yet Bruno suffers from low self-esteem, thinking that he will never score with a girl, which seems sadly true, at least until his musical talent allows him to give Coco, his Puerto Rican muse, the sort of gift which a girl might really appreciate--a brace of pop tunes that might make people "remember her name."
Director Alan Parker struggles with his actors, especially with stolid Lee Curreri in the role of Bruno--he could really have used somebody mercurial or fiery, instead he wound up with a curly-haired pound cake. "Coco" has to do all the work, the impressive Irene Cara, good in both the tender moments and the hard ones, and very affecting in the scene in which she is tricked into taking off her clothes in front of the camera for a con man affecting a French accent and an acquaintance with the films of Jean-Luc "Goddard." The other young players are awfully good, though it is hard to believe that Godspell-like Barry Miller, as a would be standup comic with a Freddie Prinze obsession, is magnetic enough to attract both Doris (Maureen Teefy) and Montgomery McNeil (Paul McCrane), both of whom run quiet circles around the brash young Miller. FAME is sometimes decidedly hard-edged and nasty, which is all to its credit and reflects its appearance at the tail end of the 70s, while the New American Cinema could still get a movie like this made, and the hopeful ending does not feel unjustified--these boys and girls have already lived life hard, and maybe they'll make some use out of all the pain in their lives. Though as Montgomery warns, it's a pie in the face business and there are no guarantees.
Movie Review: Dancing After a Dream!
Summary: 5 Stars
I definitely adore Musicals! On top of my list are two unforgettable films: "West Side Story" (1961) and "Fame" (1980).
Director Alan Parker is incredibly versatile and has delivered very good films of different genres: "Midnight Express" (1978) shows horrible entreaties of Turkish prisons; "Angel Heart" (1987) a solid & weird film about crime, cops and sorcery; "Mississippi Burning" (1988) depict the hard road to integration and masterpiece "The Wall" (1982) allows him to have a well earned significant place in every film fan short list.
The story shows the life and deeds of a teenagers group that enter a very special NYC High School with their minds and souls full of dreams.
They ARE young artists: dancers, actors, musicians, painters, composers; whatever you may choose in the artistic field. They ARE searching themselves. They ARE insecure and quite defenseless (even if they try to look tough). They ARE looking for REAL teachers to take care of them.
From this mixture of raw talent and devoted mentors a forceful story emerges, following student's full four years career. Spectators will share their anguishes and glorious moments and will surely empathize with them all.
The choreography is outstanding. Each dancing class is a backdrop where boys and girls give free rein to their fantasies and abilities.
There are two extraordinary sequences: At the Cafeteria and Dancing in the Street that deserve to be seen time and again.
Two songs are superb "Out Here on my Own" (Michael & Lesley Gore) and "Fame" (Michael Gore & Dean Pitchford).
Performances are very good but they should be considered as a "collective" mise-en-scene.
Irene Cara, Lee Currieri, Gene Anthony Ray, Maureen Teefy, Paul McCrane and Barry Miller are definitely over par!
One of the best musicals of all times! Do not let it pass by!
Reviewed by Max Yofre.
Movie Review: Baby remember my name!
Summary: 5 Stars
This Alan Parker film came out in 1980, after the director had horrified everyone with visions of Turkish Prison in MIDNIGHT EXPRESS. But here we have a loving valentine to the kids of New York who dream of being performers at the high school for performing and visual arts. It's a musical, but one where the songs and dancing come out of the kids naturally as they goof off or perform for themselves or each other. You get to see four years of high school, and about 8 kids who reach varying levels of realizations about how hard the world really is when you want to be famous. Finally FAME gets the DVD treatment! A widescreen transfer, featurettes, and a wonderful video commentary that shows 4 of the leads TODAY talking about their 15 minutes of notoriety as a star of FAME. It's a fun experience to see how they have aged, and what they remember of the filming. Alan Parker is the real star of the commentary though! He gets to talk over the entire movie, but thankfully he's witty and informative. My favorite tidbit was the original name of FAME was HOT LUNCH! Okay... that would have been ... disaster.
Best reason to own this? The music! You can watch the movie once, but I dare you to ever forget the title song "FAME". My personal fave is "Out Here On My Own" for sentimental reasons. You'll want to sign up for dance, voice, and acting lessons after this one.
See where all the hoopla started! Before the television shows, before the musical hit the stage ... there was this gritty movie showing foul-mouthed kids trying to make it in The Big Apple. Or at least through high school!
Movie Review: Baby Remember My Name
Summary: 5 Stars
This Alan Parker film came out in 1980, after the director had horrified everyone with visions of Turkish Prison in MIDNIGHT EXPRESS. But here we have a loving valentine to the kids of New York who dream of being performers at the high school for performing and visual arts. It's a musical, but one where the songs and dancing come out of the kids naturally as they goof off or perform for themselves or each other. You get to see four years of high school, and about 8 kids who reach varying levels of realizations about how hard the world really is when you want to be famous. Finally FAME gets the DVD treatment! A widescreen transfer, featurettes, and a wonderful video commentary that shows 4 of the leads TODAY talking about their 15 minutes of notoriety as a star of FAME. It's a fun experience to see how they have aged, and what they remember of the filming. Alan Parker is the real star of the commentary though! He gets to talk over the entire movie, but thankfully he's witty and informative. My favorite tidbit was the original name of FAME was HOT LUNCH! Okay... that would have been ... disaster.
Best reason to own this? The music! You can watch the movie once, but I dare you to ever forget the title song "FAME". My personal fave is "Out Here On My Own" for sentimental reasons. You'll want to sign up for dance, voice, and acting lessons after this one.
See where all the hoopla started! Before the television shows, before the musical hit the stage ... there was this gritty movie showing foul-mouthed kids trying to make it in The Big Apple. Or at least through high school!
Movie Review: Creativity, madness and hard lessions. Realistic and enteraining.
Summary: 5 Stars
-I got hooked on the Fame TV series when it was actually on TV. Then in the ninety's, I rented the movie and was shocked by the content, especially Coco's screen test that turned out to be with a porn producer(not overt). But it is a good lesson to better learn through the screen and not in real life. Just having purchased and watched it, I would recommend this to anyone that had aspiring childern; though be it with caution. One of the things that I noticed was the shell that many of the students found themselves in and how they broke out of it. It is also a good progression of going through the high school years.
-It reminds me of my high school days when I was involved with art[photography] and known as the academic smartass. I was a frequent award winner and at one of the ceremonies, a person asked how I was able to beat him out. Never thinking about the other winners, I mentioned that I simply competed with myself, to do the best work that I could put out. This theme comes through in the movie with the characters, as well. You may be the best dancer and find that you are in rough competion with yourself regarding academics. It also demonstrates that becoming the best also relies on the other people in your life that break through and make a difference.
-Anyone that enjoys live performance would be interested in this as it illustrates the behind the scenes sacrifice and commitment that performers actually make. A very enteraining deciption of everyday life and how to get the most out of it.