24 Hour Party People (2002)

In 1976, Tony Wilson sets up Factory Records and brings Manchester's music to the world.

Director:

Michael Winterbottom

Writer:

Frank Cottrell Boyce (screenplay)

Stars:

Steve Coogan, Lennie James, John Thomson

1 win & 13 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Steve Coogan	...	Tony Wilson
John Thomson	...	Charles
Paul Popplewell	...	Paul Ryder
Lennie James	...	Alan Erasmus
Shirley Henderson	...	Lindsay
Mark Windows	...	Johnny Rotten
Paddy Considine	...	Rob Gretton
Raymond Waring	...	Vini
Ron Cook	...	Derek Ryder
John Simm	...	Bernard Sumner
Danny Cunningham	...	Shaun Ryder
Dave Gorman	...	John the Postman
Ralf Little	...	Hooky (Peter Hook)
Andy Serkis	...	Martin Hannett
Nigel Pivaro	...	Actor at Granada

Storyline

Manchester 1976: Cambridge educated Tony Wilson, Granada TV presenter, is at a Sex Pistols gig. Totally inspired by this pivotal moment in music history, he and his friends set up a record label, Factory Records, signing first Joy Division (who go on to become New Order) then James and the Happy Mondays, who all become seminal artists of their time. What ensues is a tale of music, sex, drugs, larger-than-life characters, and the birth of one of the most famous dance clubs in the world, The Hacienda - a mecca for clubbers as famous as the likes of Studio 54. Graphically depicting the music and dance heritage of Manchester from the late 70's to the early 90's, this comedy documents the vibrancy that made Mad-chester the place in the world that you would most like to be.

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Plot Keywords:

manchester | drugs | violence | suicide by hanging | snorting cocaine | 

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Taglines:

The unbelievably true story of one man, one movement, the music and madness that was Manchester.

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Genres:

Biography | Comedy | Drama | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong language, drug use and sexuality

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

20 September 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

24 ores gemates rock

Filming Locations:

Mam Tor, High Peak Estate, Derbyshire, England, UK

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£265,428 (United Kingdom), 7 April 2002, Limited Release

Opening Weekend USA:

$34,940, 11 August 2002, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$1,130,379, 13 October 2002

Company Credits

Production Co:

Revolution Films, Baby Cow Productions, The Film Consortium

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Scriptwriter Frank Cottrell Boyce used to write for Coronation Street (1960). Many actors from the movie have appeared in Coronation Street at one time or another, including: Danny Cunningham, Nigel Pivaro, Peter Kay, Martin Hancock, Naomi Radcliffe, Margi Clarke, Kieran O'Brien and Fiona Allen.

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Goofs

At the Sex Pistols concert, Tony Wilson identifies one of the groups there as "Stiff Kittens, later Warsaw, later Joy Division, and finally New Order". The band never officially went by the name Stiff Kittens; they did allow it to be used on a poster for a show because they didn't have any other name they could use, but the first official name for that particular band was Warsaw.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Tony Wilson: Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it's the latest craze sweeping the Pennines, and I've got to be honest, I'd rather be sweeping the Pennines right now.

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Connections

References Coronation Street (1960)

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Soundtracks

Solid Air
Written by John Martyn
Used by kind permission of Warlock Music Ltd/Rykomusic Ltd
Performed by John Martyn
Courtesy of Universal-Island Records Ltd
Licensed by kind permission from The Film & TV Licensing Division, part of the Universal Music Group

User Reviews

Terrific music bio with award-worthy acting by Steve Coogan

Ignore the awful ads for 24 HOUR PARTY PEOPLE (which are bollocks!), and run out and see the film while it is out in limited release. Anybody with an interest in Alternative Music in general, and the British Punk/New Wave & Rave scenes should see this examination of the past 25 years of British rock as filtered through the eyes of Factory Records' Tony Wilson.

Perhaps a bit too "inside" for general audiences, it is a rare example of a music based film that its actually good cinema to go along with it's raucous soundtrack. Well done, wry and entertaining. My only quibbles are that the filmmakers seem to be preaching to the converted. Except for the tragic Ian Curtis (JOY DIVISION), little attempt is made to inform the uninitiated as to why these bands mattered (NEW ORDER in particular, is just tossed around almost as a brand name, rather than a living breathing artistic unit). Also, we are constantly told how wonderful Manchester is as a city, but we are never really shown why. Steve Coogan's portrayal of Wilson really makes the film flow and live. It's not the kind of role that usually wins awards, but here's hoping some critics group somewhere notices. He's that fine.