One of the reasons I’ve been such a rabid fan of Richard Linklater over the years is that he’s able to jump back and forth between excellent indie films, to accessible mainstream films. It’s amazing that the same man that gave us the cerebral existential masterpiece “Waking Life” is the same guy that gave us the rock and roll classic “School of Rock.” Linklater’s family comedy is not just a musical gem, but also one that manages to appeal to the genius of classic rock.
Category Archives: Rock and Roll New Year
Now and Then: the Last Beatles Song (2023)
Oliver Murray’s “Now and Then” is not only a testament to the continued unending popularity of the Beatles, but to the genius that technology is capable of. In a year where AI has officially stirred up a humongous debate among artists, “Now and Then” is a great exploration of how Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr implemented groundbreaking technology to produce one last outing with their dearly departed friend John Lennon.
Meet Me in the Bathroom (2023)
For years I was very keen to what was considered the last wave of rock and roll in the early aughts. I only was aware of it because MTV decided to air a lot of the more listenable brand of near rock and roll. From The Strokes, The White Stripes, The Hive, and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, I loved all of it. But it being MTV they only scratched the surface of it all. “Meet Me In the Bathroom” is an okay documentary that has the ability to really capture a moment in time, a moment when rock and roll was really booming. It could have been a chronicle of a big final gasp for the music genre, and most times it feels like the directors left so much out, preventing it from feeling cohesive and even coherent.
The Go-Go’s (2020)
It’s shocking how punk the background of The Go-Go’s is and ended up being. For a band that is known as one of the biggest pop acts of the 1980’s, their roots are deeply embedded in punk rock and heavy metal. Whether or not you think it was homogenized is up to you, but The Go-Gos have a great story, even if you were more of a Bangles or Banana Rama fan.
Bill and Ted Face the Music (2020)
Yet another year, yet another legacy sequel from a movie franchise that we all thought was dead for so many years. It’s a cynical approach but so many of these decades later sequels have stunk—which is probably why it’s shocking to see that “Bill and Ted Face the Music” doesn’t actually suck. In all fairness while it’s not a laugh riot, I appreciated its genuine message about love, the power of music, and appreciating what we have while we have it.
Stoned (2005)
“Stoned” recalls the life of Brian Jones from his forming of The Rolling Stones (With some rather shocking body doubles), his rivalry with his band mates, his weariness towards fame, and his inevitable downfall which led to his early death. “Stoned” is a typical, just passable enough, chronicle of yet another man’s downfall in the black hole that is fame through rock and roll, and the enabling of his friends and family.
Girls Rock! (2008)
While “Rock School” was one of my favorite documentaries of 2005, it was a missed opportunity. Arne Johnson and Shane King’s “Girls Rock!” almost get the love of music and rock and roll it right. Almost. What the directing duo of Johnson and King explore is this collective ability of these different women to create music in the confines of this limited space and show how they can sometimes fall apart at the seams due to typically creative conflicts and arguments about band names.