American Pop (1981)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Ralph Bakshi

Writer:

Ronni Kern (written by)

Release Date:

13 February 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Drama | Music

Tagline:

All those years, all those dreams, all those sons... one of them is going to be a star.

Plot:

The story of four generations of a Russian Jewish family of musicians parallels the history of American popular music in the 20th century.

Plot Keywords:

Musician | Russia | 1980s | Jewish | Pop

Cast

Ron Thompson	...	Tony / Pete (voice)
Mews Small	...	Frankie (voice) (as Marya Small)
Jerry Holland	...	Louie (voice)
Lisa Jane Persky	...	Bella (voice)
Jeffrey Lippa	...	Zalmie (voice)
Roz Kelly	...	Eva Tanguay (voice)
Frank DeKova	...	Crisco (voice) (as Frank De Kova)
Richard Singer	...	Benny (voice)
Elsa Raven	...	Hannele (voice)
Ben Frommer	...	Palumbo (voice)
Amy Levitt	...	Nancy (voice)
Leonard Stone	...	Leo Stern (voice)
Eric Taslitz	...	Little Pete (voice)
Gene Borkan	...	Izzy (voice)
Richard Moll	...	Beat Poet (voice)

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Hebrew | Russian | Yiddish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Canada:PG (Manitoba/Ontario) | Singapore:PG | USA:R (No. 25799) | Australia:M | Argentina:13 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Iceland:L | UK:15 (video rating) | UK:AA

Company:

Bakshi Productions

Trivia:

Although all of the characters are fictional, many were partially inspired by real people. The character of Frankie, for instance, was based on Grace Slick (of Jefferson Airplane) and Janis Joplin (of Big Brother and the Holding Company).

Quotes:

Man: Hey, DiNoble, what are you doin'?
Tony: Thinkin'.
Man: Thinkin' of what?
Tony: Clean thoughts.
Man: Then how come my dishes are dirty?
Tony: Dirty?
Man: Dirty.
Tony: Well, them poor dumb little bastards. They never learned the power of positive thought.
Man: I thought you said you was a dishwasher.
Tony: I'm a dishwasher.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Features The War at Home (1979)

Soundtrack:

Somebody to Love

Well Done. Aces for Bakshi

What a genuinely interesting and touching film. The rotoscoped animation may not be everyone's cup of tea but it works just fine here. I honestly think it's use was a big plus as it gives this human story a human, life like quality.

If this was done today it would be slopping over with re-do tunes by current pop nobodies to jam onto a "music from and inspired by" CD not to mention it would be poorly cast with Hollywood no talents.

The casting here doesn't leave you straining to identify celebs, it just has good actors portraying good characters. You focus on the story of the family, which after all is the point.

Underrated and very much worth your time.