The Kids Are Alright (1979)

Interviews, TV clips and concert footage make up this comprehensive profile of The Who, Britain's premiere rock band.

Director:

Jeff Stein

Writer:

Jeff Stein

Stars:

Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend, Keith Moon

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Roger Daltrey	...	Self (The Who)
John Entwistle	...	Self (The Who)
Keith Moon	...	Self (The Who)
Pete Townshend	...	Self (The Who)
Tom Smothers	...	Self (as Tommy Smothers)
Jimmy O'Neill	...	Self
Russell Harty	...	Self
Melvyn Bragg	...	Self (as Melvin Bragg)
Ringo Starr	...	Self
Mary Ann Zabresky	...	Self
Michael Leckebusch	...	Self
Barry Fantoni	...	Self
Jeremy Paxman	...	Self
Bob Pridden	...	Self
Keith Richards	...	Self (as Keith Richard)

Storyline

Through concert performances and interviews, this film offers us an "inside look" at this famous rock group, The Who. It captures their zany craziness and outrageous antics from the initial formation of the group to its major hit "Who Are You", and features the last performance of drummer Keith Moon just prior to his death.

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Plot Keywords:

rock band | british music | comedian | smashing a guitar | the who | 

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Taglines:

Seeing is believing!

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Genres:

Documentary | Music

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

As with Rick Danko, Australian comic character Norman Gunston, played by Garry McDonald, is both misspelled in the credits (as 'Gunsten') and was cut from the film.

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Goofs

Rick Danko of The Band is listed in the end credits as appearing in the film, even though his segment was deleted from the final print.

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Quotes

Roger Daltrey: Rock-n-Roll's got no future. It don't matter.

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Crazy Credits

At the end of the opening "Smothers Brothers" clip where The Who demolish their equipment, Keith Moon's bass drum with the Who logo on it explodes, and the very same logo spirals forward to the middle of the screen. Then the words of the title of the film pop up from the bottom of the screen while Pete Townshend smashes Tommy Smothers' acoustic guitar.

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Alternate Versions

The version of the film that appears on Turner Classic Movies features The Who's Rock N' Roll Circus performance window-boxed and surrounded by flashing marquee lights in the manner of the film's original theatrical presentation.

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Connections

Features Woodstock (1970)

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Soundtracks

Young Man Blues
Written by Mose Allison
Performed by The Who
Jazz Edition

User Reviews

One of the Best Rock Movies ever

While "The Last Waltz" is usually the critics' favorite rock movie, "The Kids Are Alright" has always done it for me. Basically, we have a career overview of one of the greatest rock bands ever, with numerous characteristics that make it truly exceptional.

Here's what makes this movie really unique: First, it was made by a fan, which gives it a fan's perspective (often more perceptive than a band's own self-image or, needless to say, the perception of a record company employee). But more importantly, the Who, always one of the most "down-to-earth" (and self-critical) rock bands, were willing to co-operate with the filmmaker (Jeff Stein), even going so far as to perform two exclusive concerts for the purpose of filming.

The movie thus comes together as a fan's dream: a comprehensive selection of live clips that span the band's career up to that point (including brilliant early footage and such career-defining performances as Woodstock and the band's appearance on the Smothers Brothers' TV show), along with truly insightful interview footage.

One comes away from this movie with a genuine appreciation for the combination of creativity and humility that really made the Who unique among "superstar" rock bands. Can you imagine Led Zeppelin referring to their own work as crap in the middle of "The Song Remains The Same"? The Beatles created their own career-spanning retrospective 15 years later with "The Beatles Anthology", but that film, made 25 years after the band broke up, seems much more concerned with defining and cementing the band's place in history (especially the McCartney interview segments) than with presenting the band "warts and all".

Even in "The Last Waltz", while much of The Band is somewhat disparaging about their early careers, there is still a real sense that Scorcese and Robertson are attempting to define a historically significant moment in time rather than just capturing The Band as it was (I've read that the rest of the Band members didn't even know Robertson was planning to break up the Band until after the concert!).

By contrast, "The Kids Are Alright" provides us with a refreshingly honest portrait of a band who have always tried to be honest with their fans. By combining the perceptive eye of a true fan with a cooperative band who weren't concerned with protecting (or defining) their "image", we are left with a true rarity: a documentary on a "superstar" that is neither concerned with deifying nor tearing down its subject, but instead gives us a truly satisfying (and entertaining) portrait. Plus, some of the best "70s Arena Rock" ever recorded! All in all, it adds up to a minor masterpiece.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 November 1979 (Denmark)

Also Known As:

The Kids Are Alright

Filming Locations:

Ramport Studios, Battersea, London, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$2,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

The Who Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

109 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1