Rating: 
Summary: Satanic
Review: The worst time of my life, so far, has been spent watching "Tommy." It is the scariest movie in the world. It's extremely freaky and twisted. Not only is it creepy, but I also hate the scene of The Hawker (Eyesight to the Blind) in which Tommy (as a young adult) and his parents attend a ghoulish ceremony that is an obvious parody and mockery of a Catholic Mass. The congregation worships a statue of Marilyn Monroe. That is extremely NOT FUNNY. There are a few other scenes that make fun of Jesus and the Crucifix. I turned it off immediately after I saw that.
The rest of what I saw was also quite demented and freakish. The "Cousin Kevin" scene is a little too detailed, and the Acid Queen is a true nightmare. How anyone can give this more than one star I honestly don't know. The only reason I gave it one star is because that's the least your allowed to. I easily would have given it zero if that were an option. And I know a lot of people are going to vote it "unhelpful" because they think it's a great movie and they're trying to get back at me for it, but they're wrong. This film is sacrilegious, sinful, blasphemous, and ungodly.
"Tommy" is truly evil.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Bad
Review: I just recently bought this DVD (ironically?) the day after the death of Entwistle. It's pretty good. You get to see the idea of the album and can possibly appreciate it even more. I give it a 3 because I feel that some parts of the movie were very over-acted. It's a lot sillier than what I had expected, but I think that they were doing this so everyone could enjoy it. They took a serious plot and made some elements of it kinda funny to watch (like Tina Turner on acid...). All in all, it's not bad, it's not great, but it's not bad. If you enjoyed the Beatles' movies, (Help!, A Hard Days Night, and Yellow Submarine) then you'll love this.
Rating: 
Summary: not as bad as some say....
Review: Contrary to popular belief, The Who really was/is a great band. And yes, they WERE unique...not just like other Brit bands. Pete Townshend shows his creativity and talent in the writing of Tommy. I think it is a good story- a bit disturbing at times-but that just adds to its effectiveness. With performances like some in Tommy,(Elton John, Roger Daltrey, Tina Turner, Eric Clapton) I really don't see how someone could strongly dislike it.
Rating:
Summary: Ann-Margret in a Rock Opera? I guess so!
Review: A visually spectacular and colorful adaptation of The Who's 'rock opera,' Tommy features an all-star cast including some of the greatest names and performances in rock music and a score written by Pete Townshend that was released six years prior to the film's release. he story is about a young boy named Tommy (Roger Daltrey) who sees his father (Robert Powell) killed by his stepfather (Oliver Reed) while Tommy's mother (Ann-Margret) watches in shock. After the incident, Tommy's mother and stepfather tell him in song, "You Didn't See Anything, You Didn't Hear Anything." Traumatized by witnessing this horrendous deed, he becomes psychologically blind and deaf i.e. His brain won't let him see or hear. In the course of growing up, he proceeded to become a "Pinball Wizard" of the world and had a strong following of admirers. During this time, he endured years of manipulation and abuse by his family. Eventually Tommy breaks "free" of his world of silence and darkness and becomes aware of the world around him, his mental capacity has only evolved to that of a child. At the end of the movie, Tommy's followers finally realize that they have been brainwashed by him. 'Tommy' opened with critical acclaim from virtually everyone who saw the film. The film, costing three and a half million dollars, was produced by Robert Stigwood (of 'Jesus Christ Superstar' and 'Grease' fame) who took a backseat in the publicity of the film to director Ken Russell (of 'The Boyfriend' and 'Lisztomania' fame). Russell was commended for bringing the rock opera to life by using spectacular visuals and special effects to enhance the re-recorded soundtrack. "Technically the film is astounding...Russell has fused a kaleidoscope of images that pulsate with the incredible precision of a rock drumbeat in visual counterpoint to the music." (Newsweek March 24, 1975) This is the first of two reasons for the film's appeal. The second is the fact that the film used popular rock stars in cameo appearances to attract the 20-24 year old audience, who already had an awareness of the rock opera in its original form. Those who were not aware of it were wooed via promotions on the radio using the rock stars names such as Elton John, who was at the peak of his success. The rock stars had produced more interest in the film than the already established stars such as Ann-Margret and Oliver Reed, but by using these stars it gave "...the project more legitimacy among movie fans without dulling anticipation amount rock purists significantly..." (Variety February 26, 1975) The film utilized the two different parts of the entertainment world, rock music and established film stars and used their talents to the fullest making the film appealing to the older audience as well as the younger one. After reading various glowing, positive reviews and watching "Tommy" I found myself neither liking nor disliking it. By using songs and no spoken dialogue is a most effective and creative way to tell a story. The characters must express in song feelings of joy ('It's a Boy'), the covering up of a crime ("You Didn't Hear It'), joyous holidays and the sadness of Tommy's problem ('Christmas'), the evilness of relatives ('Cousin Kevin' and 'Fiddle About'), a story about one of Tommy's fans ('Sally Simpson'), Tommy breaking out of his world of silence and darkness ('I'm Free'), and the realization of being brainwashed ('We're Not Gonna Take It'). The film also contained great renditions of The Who's songs such as Eric Clapton as the Preacher ('Eyesight to the Blind'), Tina Turner ('The Acid Queen'), Elton John ('Pinball Wizard') and Jack Nicholson as the doctor ('Go To the Mirror Boy'). The use of special effects and colorful visuals helped to relay the story to the audience who only had envisioned it while listening to the original record by The Who. The one fault I found with this movie was the use of Ann-Margret. She does not fit into this rock-opera or any rock opera for that matter. Her vocal ability does not permit her to sing these songs and consequently she screams them out, for example "Do I Smash the Mirror?" Her voice is very soft and sings some of the other songs without feeling like "Christmas" and "Tommy Can You Hear Me?" Ann-Margret's voice "...works better after you've seen the film and have an image to associate with the sounds." (The New York Times March 21, 1975). After viewing this film several times, it is still difficult for me to associate her with The Who's music and I feel someone else should have been chosen for the part. **cdk
Rating:
Summary: You have to be a Who fan...
Review: The story was kind of funny.
Rating:
Summary: There Is no Movie that is worse
Review: Seeing as how I cannot give Tommy zero stars, I will explain why Tommy, the so called "Concept Album" and "the Who" belong in a dumpster full of fire and nasty pointy sticks. First of all, the Who are not even a good band. They simply rode the coatails of success from other FAR BETTER british bands like the Stones and Pink Floyd. Secondly, this movie is garbage. Thea acting and editing are awful, and the story likewise. As for the so called "concept album" that is tommy, Its not a concept album because it has nothing new. To be a concept album you have to intruduce a NEW concept. Tommy just borrows from other better bands. If you want a real concept album, buy Dark Side of the Moon, by pink Floyd. Not, i repeat Not the Wall.
Rating:
Summary: Strange but Good
Review: I first saw this movie on tv, and I wanted to see it 'cause it was written by the Who's Pete Townshend, at first I didn't like it and didn't understand it, but after I knew what was the movie about (religion) I was impressed, the only performances I can stand are Eric Clapton and Elton John, the others are bad, especially Tina Turner's part.
But the movie is great, and Ann-Margaret is HOT! I love her on that movie(she was nominated for an oscar for Tommy).
Buy it if you have the money, rent it if you're not sure.
Rating: 
Summary: Symbolism and Ingenious Music Make This An Enduring Hit
Review: There are some artworks throughout the course of history that can scarcely be evaluated as either good or bad, because they are so unique... they are so THEMSELVES that they can't be compared to anything else. Such is TOMMY. Of all the incarnations of the TOMMY story (I can think of four now: the original concept album, a preliminary stage adaptation which featured Ringo Starr among others, this Ken Russell film, and the latest stage musical) this movie is by far my favorite. Why? The calibre of the session musicians playing on it is best of all-- sorry kids, but the original WHO version could sometimes sound a little effeminate, even though I know they wrote the bloody piece.
(Just listen to the late Nicky Hopkins' killer analog synth work throughout this movie soundtrack!!) And like everyone else, I was, and remain still, blown away by Ann-Margret's stunning performance as Tommy's mother; to align herself with such a daring, countercultural piece was a risky move for an actress d'un certain âge. Had TOMMY failed, it might have proved a damaging blow to her career. But she went for it and pulled it off. (Many kids of the 70's-- like me-- had never seen her in her earlier incarnation as Elvis's wholesome beach party sex kitten, so we didn't have any problem with her in this role, though.) Besides whatever message TOMMY has to impart about religion or fame, etc., I felt it provided an interesting glimpse into Postwar England... with its Butlin's Holiday Camps, scarlet-red memorial poppies, leopard-skin pillbox hats, etc.
Oh, and a note to the person who felt that Capt. Walker's descent into flames looked cheezy: director Russell was obviously creating a mise-en-scène designed to allude to one of Roy Liechtenstein's pop-art "BLAM!" paintings. (He also alludes repeatedly to Warhol's Marilyn during the "Eyesight To The Blind" sequence. Rather high-minded touches, I thought.)
For me, it's the music that has endured most from this film... it moves me as much at age 38 as it did when I was 12 years old in 1975!
Rating:
Summary: Tommy, The Movie: More than meets the eye
Review: How you relate to this movie will vary, more than most movies, on your own context. If you are one who makes a habbit of not thinking too deeply, you will find this movie wierd but visually and musically stimulating, and you won't derive much meaning. I saw it's original release as I was entering adolescence and I instantly related to young Tommy, feeling isolated and surrounded by ignorance and unkindness that would take quite a few more years to comprehend and move beyond. I also found the symbolism of the white sphere (the ever illusive "truth" that by the end of your teens becomes so important to find) brilliant and powerful, as was the linking of this symbol to Tommy's father at the beginning, at the junk yard, and at the end (which returns to the beginning in a way that reassures a teen or anyone else, that there is an ultimate light and truth worth following - I challenge you to find many movies in the past decade that haven't tried to lead you to the exact opposite conclusion). Listening to You is an anthem of hope, idealism, romantacism and individualism, which leaves wide open the choice of what you "listen to". The Movie is brilliant with minor flaws (at least to my forgivingly biased eyes); my next favorite song is Amazing Journey because it sums up the movie's premise and underlying theme powerfully with meaning. Townshend wrote a brilliant score and Russell created a thoroughly entertaining, inspiring and often humorous movie musical that in many ways epitomizes what it means to be that young idealist trying to survive the "Amazing Journey". This DVD version is restored to its original ground breaking 5 channel perfection and then some. Too bad noone could have included a "making of" feature noting the array of stars involved and interesting site location in the English southern coastal town of Portsmouth, but that is a very small criticism.
Rating:
Summary: The best bad movie ever made
Review: Tommy is a spectacle. Don't watch it for narrative or music or movie-making or even entertainment. Watch it like a hallucination. Part of it is like a fireworks show of brilliant color and images (e.g., Tina Turner as the Acid Queen). Part of it like a gifted artist having a psychotic break from good taste (e.g., Ken Russell's direction of the baked-beans-and-bed-bolster scene). I've seen it six times, and I enjoy it more each time. But each time, there are scenes that are so bad that I just laugh out loud and wonder how in the world did this movie get made? See it. You won't believe me unless you do.
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