Almost Famous

Almost Famous Untitled: The Bootleg Cut - Director's Edition. I've decided to review the Bootleg Cut of "Almost Famous" as most of the other reviews are of the original theatrical release. This is a wonderful two-disc ( actually 3, more on this later ) DVD collection. First, the packaging. We are presented with a brown tri-fold package, much like the bootleg recordings of the seventies. Not a whole lot of artwork on the cover. Simply a small photo of Kate Hudson (Penny Lane). The first tri-fold presents us with a wonderful addition to this DVD set. Included is a STILLWATER Music CD. This music CD is only available in this collection and features songs from the film as performed by Stillwater. Four of the tracks are co written by Nancy Wilson ( of Heart ) and Cameron Crowe ( the director ). This little bonus CD is great and very appropriate to the theme of the set. I'll jump now to DISC 2 of this set which is the Original Theatrical Version of "Almost Famous". This is the academy award winning version that was released and it's great. The story is well told and very engaging. DISC 1 is "Untitled: Almost Famous : The Bootleg Cut" which is not rated. This version is a gift. Cameron Crowe has taken the time to ( lovingly ) recut his film and include an additional 36 minutes of film. The addition of these precious minutes change the film but do not deminish it's impact or watchability. The additional 36 minutes add mostly to the character of Penny Lane ( Academy Award Nominee Kate Hudson ) and expand on her history. Unlike many extended versions which add little to character development, this version of "Almost Famous" brings more insight and depth to nearly all characters. The acting is outstanding, and it's clear that the scenes not in the original release were cut strictly due to time constraints as the acting is right on. This is a great cast. Kate Hudson is a stand out, as is newcomer Patrick Fugit. Billy Crudup is wonderful as well, this is the movie which should have made him a movie star. Jason Lee ( of "Chasing Amy" and other Kevin Smith films ) is hysterical and just enough over the top to be believable. The movie, this version, rests soundly with Kate Hudson and Patrick Fugit. I would think, had this Bootleg version been released theatrically, then perhaps Kate Hudson would have actually won the Academy Award rahter than just being nominated. She's done a wonderful job with this complex character. The director's commentary is priceless, much like attending a film school seminar as conducted by Cameron Crowe. This two disc set is a must have for any film fan. Even if you've got the original DVD release ( rather than this special edition set ), this is still more than worth the purchase price. I would recommend this set. Strongly. Best Regards, turtlex PS - if you've enjoyed this review, feel free to add me to your favorite people list as I try to write reviews frequently. Thanks for reading.

Cameron Crowe wrote and directed "Almost Famous", which is fitting since it is largely about his own beginnings. Cameron was the youngest writer for Rolling Stone magazine and, as a teenage journalist, he followed numerous bands as they went on tour. In this film, these bands are rolled up into a four-man group called Stillwater. These guys get my vote for the best band that never was. Since I was just out of kindergarten when the story was set, you should forgive me for thinking, after my first viewing, that Stillwater was an authentic recreation of some famous group from the early 70's. The realism is that perfect! But this movie is not about a band, at least not predominantly. It is a coming of age story. A young man raised in an unusual household, with an unusual mother, is taking his first steps to adulthood. The interesting thing is that his first steps are so large as to stretch past most people's entire careers. Through a combination of talent, luck and timing, young William Miller, played perfectly by Patrick Fugit, is recruited by Rolling Stone magazine to write an article on Stillwater. This strange occurrence actually makes sense when you watch the film despite sounding ridiculous as I write it. If William goes through dramatic changes in a short time, his mother is a rock of stability. Elaine Miller is able to "freak out" most people, with a few choice words but to her son, she is home, safety, love and in a way... imprisonment. She is very intense but caring and it is this combination which drives her eighteen year old daughter to a life of airline stewardship. We can see Elaine's true courage however, when she agrees to let the fifteen year old William go "on the road" with a drug taking, womanizing rock band. This, after we have seen her characterize Simon and Garfuncle as "stoned" and forbidden their music from her house. One of the most important people William comes into contact with, on his journey, is Penny Lane. She is a beautiful, glowing, perfectly permed young dryad who follows the bands and has a following of her own. Adamant that she is not a groupie, Penny has created a concept called "Band Aids." Her subscribers refrain from sex with the performers in an effort to more truly embrace the pure experience. She talks a good game but in the end, she's just a young woman in love. The object of her affection is Russell Hammond, the lead guitarist and Zen-master for Stillwater. Her situation is complicated after William falls in love with her, at first sight. Thus Alice enters Wonderland and many an adventure is had. Despite William's best intentions and the good advice of his mentor, Lester Bangs, the band manages to seduce him. His plan, to get in and out before missing a test, is soon discarded in the face of a larger than life rock and roll experience. There is one truly touching scene where the band, (and company), is riding their bus to the next gig and singing along to "Tiny Dancer." William leans over to Penny and says, "I have to go home!" To which she replies, with a magical pass of her hand, "You are home." That says it all. There are several contrasting character changes happening during the film. One stands out more than most. William starts his professional career as a fan, loving the band, the music and the whole lifestyle. As the tour progresses and his eyes are opened, he becomes, not jaded but more worldly, professional and wise. Conversely, Penny Lane is introduced to us as the epitome of sophistication. She is young but knowing, and handles William as an older sister might. As the film progresses we discover that Penny is not so all knowing as she seemed. She is just as fragile and naively hopeful as any other girl her age. In the end, it is William that has to send her a reality check. Everything about this film is fascinating. The music is just wonderful, with Billy Crudup and Jason Lee bringing authenticity to every performance. The band's interpersonal dynamic is almost a character of its own. This climaxes during the famous plane crash scare, when each confesses their deepest secrets to the unrestrained laughter of the audience. William, his Mother and Penny are all unforgettable creations. Crowe is a wonderful writer, so good in fact, that I am disappointed he didn't turn this story into a book. Watching the movie will just have to be enough, for now.

Just as described

An excellent movie. Good music, interesting plot, and good acting with many young actors who are now famous. I had not seen the movie since its release 25 years ago, but I liked it just as much as I did then. It looks great in 4K on a large screen, and I am looking forward to watching it annually.

This is by far my favorite film of 2000 and one of my all-time favorite films ever! I have owned this film on every platform it’s ever been released on and this 4K version is simply put, absolutely beautiful and amazing in picture and technical quality! This autobiographical tale about Cameron crowes real life will make you feel envious about the life that the films director, Cameron Crowe himself has made here! Not many people get to live a life like his and this film is about his actual early teen years following around a band in the 70s instead of studying to be a lawyer as his mother would prefer. This film is full of nostalgia from a bygone era that many wish they could return to. This movie will make you laugh, cry, reminisce and rethink your life all at the same time! A must see and a must have for any film collector!

If you're a fan this version is worth having but be aware that the longer run time isn't so much about extra scenes as letting some scenes run longer than on the first release. All of them are welcome and interesting, I suppose they were cut on the original for run time more than anything. As for extras, the packaging doesn't bring much to the table but the director's commentary is interesting. There are even some of Crowe's old Rolling Stone magazine articles included. Then there's the audio CD of Stillwater music if you're a fan. Bottom line, I'm a big fan of the movie so I'm glad I got this copy, but as it gets scarcer over time I don't know that I would pay a ton of money for it.

This has been one of my top five favorite all-time films since it released 26 years ago. This version gives the Director's Cut a high-res look and sound to go with the Blu-ray tech. If you still find it impossible to pass up this film when channel-scanning, this is a worthwhile upgrade.

This movie is the best rock movie and one of my favorites. There are scenes in this movie, that, in my opinion, are some of the best ever. I highly recommend this movie.

Great Movie👍

Gran película. Es la versión con escenas eliminadas, termina teniendo una duración de 2 horas y media. El contenido adicional también es muy bueno.

[Amazon migrated my original review of this great movie across to the Blu-Ray edition from the Region 1 "Boot Cut". Unfortunately this means that a lot of it is completely inaccurate! The Boot Cut has great extras, such as the superb commentary, and the Blu-Ray has nothing much aside from the extended version of the film. Quite why it was possible to do more with the DVD format than it is with Blu-Ray I'm not sure, but with no Stillwater CD, no "Stairway to Heaven" scene, no deleted scenes etc. this is an opportunity badly missed. Still, it's the extended version and the film really is wonderful ... so it keeps its 5 stars either way.] "Almost Famous" is a truly great film about music by someone who was also a great rock journalist. If you missed it in cinemas, this is a great opportunity to pick it up for home viewing. The three discs here are a short CD by "Stillwater" (the fictional band from the film), a DVD of the original theatrical release and the main event: a DVD of the Director's Cut with a commentary by Cameron Crowe and his mother. The longer version, it should be noted, takes what was already a brilliant autobiographical film and adds some key scenes, most of which explore further the rock world of the early seventies. Crowe himself wanted to tell not merely a love story, but - more importantly - the love story between a band and its fans. The additional detail really "sells" this aspect of the film, most notably in an extraordinarily moving scene when Kate Hudson's character is thrown a birthday party by the band. If you haven't seen this version, you haven't really seen the film: it really does make that much difference. Finally, the commentary, which is one of the most informative that I've encountered. Crowe's mom (played to great effect in the film by Frances McDormand) provides a wonderful foil to Crowe himself as they talk about how closely events in the film tracked the actual events of his life as a journalist with Rolling Stone. If you think that the movie is inauthentic before you hear the commentary, you will have changed your mind by the end of it. Both come across as really warm, funny people as well, which is more than can be said for most commentators on DVDs. One niggle: there's an important scene that was deleted presumably because Crowe couldn't get permission to use "Stairway to Heaven". It's here as an extra on the disc (you have to play your own CD along with it) but isn't incorporated into the "Untitled" Director's Cut. It's a shame that in this area the copyright holder spoiled what was in every other respect a great DVD version of one of the better films of recent years.

Film molto bello.

Kommerziell war Cameron Crowes Musikfilm "Almost Famous" mit einem Einspielergebnis von 47,4 Millionen Dollar kein Erfolg im Kino beschieden, denn die Herstellungskosten beliefen sich auf ca. 60 Millionen Dollar. Trotz dieses finanziellen Desasters erhielt der Film gr0ßen Beifall bei den Filmkritikern und er wurde sehr schnell zum Kultfilm. In der Umfrage der BBC über die besten Filme des neuen Jahrhunderts landete "Almost Famous" auf Platz 79. Kritikerpapst Roger Ebert bezeichnete ihn als besten Film des Filmjahres 2000. Der Film ist eine melancholisch-schöne Rückschau auf die gute alte Zeit, des RocknRoll oder besser auf die Zeit, in der die Künstler vor allem für ihre Musik lebten - das große Geld spielte eher noch eine untergeordnete Rolle, doch sie sollte früher oder später die kommerzielle Rock- und auch Popmusik prägen. Erzählt wird die Geschichte des 15jährigen jugendlichen Journalisten William Miller (Michael Angarano spielt den William als 11jährigen, Patrick Fugit ist der 15jährige William), der in den frühen 70er Jahren für das Rolling Stone Magazin einen Bericht über die angesagte Rockband Stillwater schreiben darf und mit ihnen auf Tournee geht. Der Film ist halbbiographisch, da Regisseur Crowe tatsächlih als Teenager für den Rolling Stone schreib. "Almost Famous" erhielt vier Oscar-Nominierungen (für das beste Originaldrehbuch von Cameron Crowe, das auch mit dem Oscar ausgezeichnet wurde, ausserdem Frances McDormand und Kate Hudson in der Kategorie Nebendarstellerin sowie für den besten Schnitt). Es wurde außerdem 2001 mit dem Grammy Award für das beste Compilation-Soundtrack-Album ausgezeichnet. Er gewann außerdem zwei Golden Globe Awards, für den besten Film (Musical oder Komödie) und Kate Hudson als beste Nebendarstellerin. Im Jahr 1969 in San Diego kämpft das Wunderkind William Miller darum, sich anzupassen. Sein Leben wird noch komplizierter, als er erfährt, dass seine Mutter, die verwitwete College-Professorin Elaine (Frances McDormand) ihn fälschlicherweise glauben gemacht hat, er sei bereits zwölf Jahre alt. William ist eigentlich elf, kam mit fünf Jahren in die erste Klasse und übersprang auf Wunsch der Mutter die fünfte Klasse. Das strikte Rockmusik-Verbot der willensstarken Elaine und ihre Angst vor der Popkultur wirken sich nachhaltig auf ihre Kinder aus und treiben schließlich Williams 18-jährige Schwester Anita (Zooey Deschanel) dazu, nach San Francisco zu ziehen und Flugbegleiterin zu werden. 1973 strebt der inzwischen fünfzehnjährige William, beeinflusst von Anitas geheimem Abschiedsgeschenk, einem Fundus an Rockalben, danach, Rockjournalist zu werden und schreibt freiberufliche Artikel für kleinere Zeitschriften in San Diego. Der Rockjournalist Lester Bangs (Philip Seymour Hoffman) ist von Williams Texten beeindruckt und gibt ihm einen 35-Dollar-Auftrag für die Rezension eines Black-Sabbath-Konzerts. William darf den Backstage-Bereich nicht betreten, bis die Eröffnungsband Stillwater eintrifft und William sich schmeichelnd Zugang verschafft. Leadgitarrist Russell Hammond (Billy Crudup) findet Gefallen an ihm und William lernt das erfahrene Groupiegirl Penny Lane (Kate Hudson) Kennen , die völlig auf Russell abfährt. Obwohl sie sich wie ein stereotypes Groupiesverhält, besteht Penny Lane darauf, dass sie mehr für die Musik empfindet als für die Jungs, die diese Musik machen. Als er Millers Artikel über Black Sabbath sieht, beauftragt der Rolling-Stone-Redakteur Ben Fong-Torres (Terry Chen) William, einen Artikel über Stillwater zu schreiben und schickt ihn mit der Band an Bord von „Doris“ Stillwaters in die Jahre gekommenem, aber geliebtem Bus, auf Reisen. William interviewt die anderen Bandmitglieder, aber Russell geht ihm aus dem Weg. Die Spannungen zwischen Russell und Leadsänger Jeff Bebe (Jason Lee) werden deutlich, als das erste T-Shirt der Band produziert wird, auf dem Russell in voller Sichtweite zu sehen ist, während der Rest der Band im Schatten bleibt. William wird von der Band scherzhaft als "der Feind“ bezeichnet, da er Journalist ist, aber er beginnt allmählich seine Objektivität zu verlieren, als er in ihren inneren Kreis immer mehr integriert wird. Und William verliebt sich heimlich auch in Penny Lane, die allerdings nur Augen für den verheirateten Russell hat... Crowes Erlebnisse wurden in diesem Film verarbeitet, denn er ging mit den Allman Brothers auf Tour. Die DVD Fassung beinhaltet den 162 Minuten langen Director Cut, die Kinofassung war mit 118 Minuten deutlich kürzer. Wie der junge William wird auch der Zuschauer Beobachter dieser Geschichte, die sehr viel Zeitgeist und auch eigene Erinnerungen an diese Zeit aufmachen kann. Die Geschichte gibt auch Einblick in das Leben der Rockstars, die zuerst voller Herzblut und Individualismus sind und doch irgendwann mit den Gesetzen der Industrie und der Vermarktung konfrontiert werden. Die Mitglieder der Band sind immer bereit mit den zahlreichen Groupies etwas anzufangen. William ist der Beobachter und erst ganz am Schluß der Geschichte wird er zum aktiven Part, denn er hat Gefühle entwickelt. Ein tolles Ensemble wurde ausgewählt und vor allem die Newcomer Kate Hudson und Patrick Fugit überzeugen auf ganzer Linie.