Music

Feb 23 2012

FUBAR

I had known about FUBAR for a long, long time, almost 5 years before I watched this movie a few weeks back.  First of all, for those who don’t know, is a military term which is short for  ”fucked up beyond all/any recognition/repair/reason/redemption”. Pick & choose the R according to the situation & individuals. The movie is a mockumentary about the headbanger lifestyle and focuses on two lifelong friends who are living out their lives, constantly drinking beer and not really doing much in life. The Michael Dowse directed film was a Sundance film festival entry and achieved a cult status in North America.

The movie is shot & based near Calgary, Canada which is where the protagonists & objects of the mockumentary live. The lead characters Terry & Dean are partly based on a comedy routine performed by David Lawrence and Paul Spence that they developed based on the head-banger subculture. Terry & Dean grew up together and spend all of their free time listening to their favourite rock & metal bands and drinking beer. They usually drink beers by making a hole on the side of the can and drinking it in one shot as it pours out (shotgunning is the term, I guess) and prefer a brand called Molson’s Old Style Pilsner which is also known as ‘Saskatchewan Champagne’.

The duo are approached by director Farrel to be the subjects of a documentary, although the duo themselves don’t really understand why they were chosen. Dean, who is an unemployed musician having trouble growing facial hair, and Terry, a the dock loader,  agree to let Farrel film their lives. Terry has a ex-girlfriend with whom he also has a baby girl. Terry instead lives with Dean living irresponsibility through gratuitous scenes of shotgunning beers, vandalism, punching each other and wrestling furniture scattered with food cartons. When Terry and Dean meet up with their recently married friend Troy, they try to get him to come over later for a party. Troy (known as Tron in his headbanging days) promises he will, but his wife forbids him later on the grounds that he has to be responsible. Farrel contrasts Troy and his old friends by showing Terry and Dean getting drunk and insulting their friend when he doesn’t show up.

Later Dean informs us that Terry has testicular cancer and he has to consult with Dr. Lim (who is Dowse’s real doctor) after pressure from his ex-girlfriend. After the biopsy, Terry learns they will have to remove one of his testicles, and decides to have a final wild weekend before going under the knife. With his best friend Dean, Terry takes Farrel & his crew on a camping trip in a car with lots of beer & a couple lawn chairs. After Farrell offers to pay for a hotel the next night as he had gotten wasted and tried to fight the duo. At the hotel they meet up with many other real Canadian metalheads who fight for the camera. The next day Farrel dies when he is dared to jump into a river and hits his head on a rock. This seems to sober up Terry in particular.

Terry undergoes the surgery and later has chemo treatment shaving his head bald before doing so. He scares Dean at the end by saying that he doesn’t have much to live and Dean believes him for a few minutes before realizing that his friend is just pulling his leg. Some of the more hilarious scenes involve Dean’s poem “Woman is a Danger Cat,” Terry’s speech about bowling alley cuisine, and of course all the drunken shenanigans, which includes running away after demolishing a bus shelter with an oil drum. The soundtrack is also awesome. I’ll give the movie an 8 out of 10!

By Roshan • Movies, Music • 2

Feb 19 2012

The Runaways

Before watching this movie, or rather I should say that before I knew about the topic of this movie, I had no clue who Cherie Currie was. I was well aware of Joan Jett and Lita Ford but did not know that the two of them had been in a band together before they became very famous and that the band was fronted by a singer called Cherie Currie. This I did find out when I watched an interview with Cherie & Matt (former GnR & Cult drummer, now of Velvet Revolver) who are collaborating for Cherie’s new musical project. So anyway The Runways is a biopic about the 1970s all-girl punk rock band of the same name, written and directed by Floria Sigismondi, who based the screenplay on the book Neon Angel: A Memoir of a Runaway by the band’s original lead vocalist Cherie Currie. Dakota Fanning plays Currie, Kristen Stewart plays rhythm guitarist and vocalist Joan Jett, and Michael Shannon plays record producer Kim Fowley.

Currie is a teenager living in Los Angeles idolizing David Bowie and wanting to be a rock star. She dresses u like Bowie for a talent show and wins the contest inspite of  initially being heckled. Joan Jett, a bisexual teen who plays guitar is also searching for rock stardom. She meets producer Kim Fowley and talks about starting an all girl rock band; Kim in turn introduces her to drummer Sandy West (Stella Maeve). The two  girl become friends and are on the lookout for a singer when they meet Cherie, who they invite to audition in their trailer. At her less than inspiring audition, Kim and Joan write up a song, Cherry Bomb, on the spot  for her which she slowly proceeds to do much better singing on. The Runaways, joined by Lita Ford (Scout Taylor-Compton) on lead guitar and Robin (Alia Shawkat) on bass is formed.

The band is signed to Mercury Records and soon hit the road. Cherie’s sister is initially upset & jealous that her younger sibling can go on the road and become famous while she has to stay back and take care of their father. The band record an album which propelled by their hit single Cherry Bomb starts climbing the charts. Success brings them to Japan where screaming hordes of fans mob them. However it seems that Cherie is the main attraction and considered to be a sex symbol. When a magazine photo shoot of Cherie, which she didn’t tell the band about, is discovered by Lita, she causes a fit. Cherie is shocked because she thought the article would be of all of them with individual photo sessions. As Lita, Cherie, and Joan argue, crazy fans break through the window and chase the girls out of the building. Cherie’s drug problems become worse. She overdoses in the hotel, collapses in an elevator and is sent to the hospital. Upon arriving back in the United States, Cherie begins to abuse her alcoholic father’s painkillers.

During the recording for the next album Cheri has a breakdown, argues with Kim and refuses to play. Lita insults her and though Joan defends her, Cherie quits the band. The band is broken up and go their separate ways. After moping around for months Joan starts her own band Joan Jett &  The Heartbreakers and becomes a huge success. Cherie goes on a drug & drinking spree and collapses and has to be hospitalized. A few years later while working a 9-5 retail store job, Cherie hears Joan being interviewed on the radio. She calls the station and has an awkward conversation with Joan and the station interviewer for a couple of minutes. Cherie keeps the phone and goes back to work, smiling as another Joan Jett song plays on the radio.

It’s a good movie describing the excess that went on with the very young band and Cherie tumultuous initial bouts with the music industry. The real Cherie went on to release a few solo albums and one with her sister Marie. She also became a wood carving artist for a while and now has a new musical project.

7 out of 10!

By Roshan • Movies, Music • 0

Feb 12 2012

RIP Whitney Houston

American singer, actress & producer model Whitney Houston passed away last night.  She was 48. The announcement was made by her publicist to the press. The Beverly Hills Police Department responded to an emergency call at the Beverly Hills Hotel Saturday, Lt. Mark Rosen, of the Bevery Hills Police Department said. Members of hotel staff and fire department officials attempted to revive a person on the fourth floor, who has since been confirmed to be Houston, Rosen said. Officials did not see obvious signs of criminal intent, and are currently investigating to determine the cause of death, he said.

At her peak she was considered the Queen of Pop but her voice and regal image were ravaged by drug use, erratic behavior and a tumultuous marriage to singer Bobby Brown. Her list of awards includes 2 Emmy Awards, 6 Grammy Awards, 30 Billboard Music Awards, 22 American Music Awards, among a total of 415 career awards as of 2010. She also acted in 4 movies including The Bodyguard in 1992 & 1995′s Waiting To Exhale. By the end of her career, Houston became a stunning cautionary tale of the toll of drug use. Her album sales plummeted and the hits stopped coming; her once serene image was shattered by a wild demeanor and bizarre public appearances. She confessed to abusing cocaine, marijuana and pills, and her once pristine voice became raspy and hoarse, unable to hit the high notes as she had during her prime.

Back in 1986-90 Whitney’s songs were the one of the pop songs that filtered through in the video tapes that me & my cousins watched, recorded from various Grammy specials, Top of the Pops & other such chart shows. I first heard about her when her Saving All My Love hit the Grammy awards. Since then a few of her songs have been in our list of regulars that we played over & over. I have never been her fan but it seems that she is a part of those memories of summers spent listening & watching to lots of songs with my relatives. And it feels like I am obligated to write this post as a tribute.

PS. – at one time her name was so well know in my extended family that even my aunts & my mom, who never listen to English music, kept saying ‘Chutney Houston’ for fun as they kept hearing her name!

Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012)

By Roshan • Movies, Music • 2