The Runaways (2010)

A coming-of-age biographical film about the 1970s teenage all-girl rock band The Runaways. The relationship between band members Cherie Currie and Joan Jett is also explored.

Director:

Floria Sigismondi

Writers:

Floria Sigismondi (screenplay), Cherie Currie (book)

Stars:

Kristen Stewart, Dakota Fanning, Michael Shannon

6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kristen Stewart	...	Joan Jett
Dakota Fanning	...	Cherie Currie
Michael Shannon	...	Kim Fowley
Stella Maeve	...	Sandy West
Scout Taylor-Compton	...	Lita Ford
Alia Shawkat	...	Robin
Riley Keough	...	Marie Currie
Johnny Lewis	...	Scottie
Tatum O'Neal	...	Cherie's Mom
Brett Cullen	...	Cherie's Dad
Hannah Marks	...	Tammy
Jill Andre	...	Aunt Evie
Ray Porter	...	Band Member
Kiaya Snow	...	Cashier
Allie Grant	...	Club Girl

Storyline

In 1975, San Fernando Valley teen Joan Larkin reinvents herself as Joan Jett, a guitarist who wants to form an all-girl punk band. She pitches the idea to a sleazy manager, Kim Fowley, who pairs her with a drummer and then searches for a face: he finds Cherie Currie, at age 15, the perfect jailbait image for his purpose; by luck, she can sing. Two others round out the band, The Runaways. Fowley books a tour, signs them to Mercury Records, and packs them off to crowds in Japan. Seeds of conflict sprout early: Fowley puts Cherie front and center in the publicity, she's soon strung out on drugs and vodka, and jealousies arise. Without adult supervision, where can Joan and Cherie end up?

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Plot Keywords:

f rated | revisionist history | triple f rated | feminist film | cherry bomb | 

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Taglines:

It's 1975 and they're about to explode.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, drug use and sexual content - all involving teens

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [France]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 March 2010 (USA)

Also Known As:

Neon Angels

Filming Locations:

California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$805,115, 21 March 2010

Gross USA:

$3,573,673

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$4,681,651

Company Credits

Production Co:

River Road Entertainment, Linson Entertainment, Blackheart Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film neglects to mention that Cherie Currie's mother Marie Harmon had a successful B-movie career in Hollywood, with several dozen roles through the end of the 1950s.

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Goofs

The band checks into standard budget motel in which all room entrances are from exterior walkways facing pool. However, the girls are later seen walking down enclosed hallway to get to their rooms.

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Quotes

Cashier: [Cherie tries to purchase a handle of vodka] Um, I can't sell you this.
Cherie Currie: I have my ID.
Grocery Store Manager: Yes, what can I do? Uh, I'm sorry, but, we won't be able to sell you that.
Cherie Currie: I'll have you fired. Replaced. Just like that.
Grocery Store Manager: I'm gonna have to ask you to leave, please. Right now.
Cherie Currie: You're nothing but dog shit, Mister. And you. You're just a filthy... pussy.

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Alternate Versions

The UK version removes the glue-sniffing scene in order to obtain a 15 rating (and thus avoid a higher 18 rating).

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Connections

Referenced in Special Collector's Edition: Titanic - 1ª Edición (2011)

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Soundtracks

I Wanna Be Where the Boys Are
Written by Kim Fowley and Roni Lee
Performed by Kristen Stewart, Stella Maeve and Michael Shannon

User Reviews

Authentic but unoriginal film-making

Truth may often be stranger than fiction, but that doesn't mean it makes an interesting film, and this is a classic case in point. Having hit the music scene at the very end of the 70's and been immediately hooked by Siouxsie & The Banshees and their contemporaries, I was vaguely aware of Joan Jett, but not much more than that. Despite what I thought was an excellent central performance by Kristen Stewart, I didn't come out of the cinema after this film feeling that I'd learnt a whole lot more about Joan Jett, or her place in history. There was no doubt that The Runaways gave tradition a good kick in the teeth, and hacked a fearsome swathe through a stale, male-dominated industry – but the sense of how difficult and cutting edge it must have been to form an all-girl teenage band at that time felt underplayed.

Instead, we are treated to a formulaic and generic sex'n'drugs'rock'n'roll story that applies to so many bands, concentrating on the interplay between the 2 leads and their producer/manager, egos over-inflated by sudden success and nihilistic burn-out. Whilst The Runaways may have been one of the first to go through this process in real life, in terms of rock biopics, they're very late to the party, and it just felt like a clichéd resume offering nothing that we hadn't already seen before in other, better genre movies – for example, both 'Breaking Glass' and the outstanding 'Almost Famous' are more accomplished, satisfying and engaging pieces of film-making, albeit largely works of fiction.

So, a standard, angry rebel rock bio-pick that is well-made and thumps along nicely, but what it offered in authenticity (apart from the rubbish plastic dogshit) it lacked in originality. 6.5/10