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Still Crazy

Still Crazy

List Price: $27.95
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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A sharp film for those who know the '70's weren't all disco
Review: This is one of my favorite movies of the last 5, no, make that 5 1/2 years. From those nice men who brought us "The Commitments", "Lovejoy Mysteries", and lots of "Tracy Takes On"(namely Ian La Frenais & Dick Francis), "Still Crazy" has excellent casting, script, and performances. (Darn), I feel sorry I never saw The Fruits! The musical performances by Bill Nighy & Jimmy Nail rule this movie, and Stephen Rea, Juliette Aubrey, Billy Connolly, and Timothy Spall are great, too. Even the tunes done for the movie are well done, and "The Flame Still Burns" gives me chills, kind of like Lowell George singing "20 Million Things To Do".
If you really love "Still Crazy", here's a little fun thing for you: when the band has its reunion lunch & is inspired by a shepherd boy's boombox, the scene was shot at the Red Lion in Avebury and in Avebury Circle, in Wiltshire west of London. We went there a few years ago (...).

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The best British Comedy of 1999
Review: A perfect cast and a good script make this a film to be watched over and over. Bill Nighy's best ever performance against Jimmy Nail's permanently depressed attitude made for some hilarious moments, not least the concert in the Belgian basement, where Nighy ends up wrecking the plumbing The only thing this film lacked was a fifteen to twenty minute prologue detailing the band in their prime before the original lead singer died, this would have all the more entertaining as the actors who played the 'young' band were absolute dead ringers for the '90s' equivalents

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Ten Stars
Review: I can't remember the last time I was so entertained by a movie that I watched it three times within 24 hours. STILL CRAZY took me from my somber, somewhat starchy middle-age existence and transported me back to my college years in the Seventies, when I was in a ragtag part-time band. Make no mistake about it: this movie nails the chaotic, outlandish, self-absorbed, overbearing and irresistibly dysfunctional behavior of rock musicians. The antics of the characters--even in middle age as they attempt to revive their careers--brought back a plethora of memories. I, too, can recall gigs that had gone awry; band members shouting chords at one another during a song; the frequent "artistic" disagreements; impromptu jam sessions in barns, garages, empty high school band rooms; and the thrill of connecting with an audience (usually a drunk audience).

Buy this movie...rent this movie...see this movie. It's more than just a comedy; there is a very real human component that transcends even the tumultuous world of the music industry. You'll laugh, you'll brush away an occasional tear, and you'll be thoroughly entertained.

The flame still burns. God bless rock 'n roll!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Probably my favourite movie of all time
Review: And what is more, my 15 year old son watches this on average once a week - and still hasn't tired of it.
A beautifully crafted film, as English as they come - from the writing and directing to the subtle humour throughout. I would rate it alongside Cold Comfort Farm as exemplary English cinematic offering.
The running joke on 'body-parts' in Band names is truly hilarious, although I expect you have to have been there to get all of the humour.
It is impossible to fault the casting: Bill Nighy is so credible as Ray( we all know that character, eh? ) and Jimmy Nail does the sulky bass player as only he could do.
A warm, soothing film to be watched over and over and over again.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Middle-aged attempt to recapture youth.
Review: This story of once-famous rock stars taking to the road in embarrassing middle-age summoned unavoidable comparisons with 'This Is Spinal Tap'. Here, however, the interest is less in ridiculing preposterous figures - although some of the things their singer does are conventionally silly - than fondly celebrating the desires of middle-age. When we first see our aging heroes, they are working a variety of unglamorous, 'ordinary' jobs. Unlike 'Spinal Tap', there is little attention to believable detail in this film, to the processes of the music industry, to the wiles of the people running and peopling it, to the alien-like removal from reality of its stars. There are various flashbacks to the band's skinny, youthful selves, but we don't believe for a moment that these pretty young men have any connection to the shabby slobs who have now, pod-like, taken over their names. These men are like any of their middle-aged ilk who reach a certain point of their life, see where they've ended up, a million miles from their teenage dreams and desires, and try to live them out before it's too late (a kind of rock 'City Slickers' if you will). Looked at this way, the film has more pathos than as a study of once-great superstars, or a satire of the music industry.

This doesn't mean there's any great depth to the characters - each is given a particular quality which is only minimally modified as the plot treads its predictable path. The bland trawl through various good-looking Euro-locations doesn't give them the rootedness or context they need (although this, admittedly, is a theme). The film's writers are a legendary British sitcom partnership, and the best scenes are those bantering and slanging sequences in interior, TV-friendly spaces such as pubs, buses or dressing rooms. The amiable cast make the whole thing watchable, but the music is neither funny enough to laugh at, nor good enough to pack the required emotional punch.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Still Crazy
Review: Ever since I stumbled across this brilliantly
written & casted British satire, I've been reminded
of my love of 70's music & styles, and especially the
fragile psyche of some of those band members, like the
lamentable Ray, whose pre-concert rituals, and on stage
spasms are perfect. Timothy Spall & Billy Connolly
provide great comic relief ("I'm Posh Fruit") from the
sombre sections of this classic story. I loved it from
start to finish, and was so taken by it that I'm ordering
the soundtrack as a keepsake. I'm also obsessed with
"The Flame Still Burns", a classic ballad which I have
been playing to death on my VCR. It's a touching song, and
adds to the moving and triumphant ending. Please get this
cast together one more time for a sequel, as there's some definite magic happening here.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Flame Still Burns for this bloomin' brilliant movie!
Review: What an amazing film!!! Wonderfully hilarious, with so much to offer! For anyone who has been on the road with a rock band, listened to a rock band, or indeed, lived, this is such an enjoyable film. The poignant moments are incredibly moving, though the movie is by no means suffocated with pointless sentimentality. And yes, the humorous parts are side-splitting. The story of the aged heavy metal band that try desperately to make it back to the top after splitting up 20 years before, is one that is a great basis for a brilliant film, and it doesn't disappoint for one minute. All the performances are amazing (particularly that of Bill 'I'm not fifty' Nighy as the well meaning but slightly dim lead singer, Ray. Be prepared for a marvellous evening in!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Floydian Slip
Review: Q: What do you call a musician without a girlfriend? A: Homeless! If that old chestnut still makes you chortle, then you will "get" this movie. Painting an absolutely life-like portrait of an "almost great" 70's British band reforming for a 90's reunion tour, "Still Crazy" does "Spinal Tap" one better (I guess then you could say this film goes to "eleven", actually). The important dinstinction to make with "Still Crazy" is that, unlike other rock 'n' roll satires, it doesn't "mock" its characters, rather it treats them with the kind of respect that can only come from someone who truly loves and understands the music. Great performances all around, with the oft-mentioned Bill Nighy a standout in a hilarious yet poignant performance as the insecure lead singer. Devoted prog-rock fans will revel in many clever "inside" references, and are sure to recognize that the character of the "lost" leader/guitarist is obviously a tribute to Syd Barrett. Keep in mind, however, that you don't have to be a rabid rock fan to enjoy this film; its core issues dealing with mid-life crisis and the importance of following your bliss are universal themes. An exceptional original soundtrack (the kind that SHOULD, but of course NEVER gets nominated for an Academy Award!) puts the icing on the cake.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Last of the Quality Movies
Review: Still Crazy is a film of a dying breed. A gem amongst so much garbage. Although this movie is quoted as being 1998's "The Full Monty", it is much more then that. It is the story of a band who has lost a guitarist to drugs and break up. Then years later all the members of the band are broke and decide to put the band back together, and ride the comback of 70's music for all it's worth. However, there are complications and hatred for each other within the band. Although this film is a comedy, it is not a typical comedy. It is very intelligent. A soundtrack of original songs that are excellent, fabulous acting, and amazing writing make this film one that you can watch over and over again. This is a lost classic.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Still Funny
Review: Wonderful movie that is funny and poingant at the same time. One way I gauge how much I enjoy a movie is how fast the time passes. This one was over way to early for me. The obvious comparison is Spinal Tap. Still Crazy is a kinder, gentler version of that great film, with more believable and sympathetic characters. And, like Spinal Tap, bears repeated viewings.


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