Gimme Danger (2016)

An in-depth look at the legendary punk band, The Stooges.

Director:

Jim Jarmusch

Writer:

Jim Jarmusch

Stars:

Iggy Pop, Jim Jarmusch, Bob Waller

1 win & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Iggy Pop	...	Self (as Jim Osterberg)
Jim Jarmusch	...	Self (voice)
Bob Waller	...	Self (archive footage)
The Stooges	...	Themselves (archive footage)
James Williamson	...	Self
Steve Mackay	...	Self
Scott Asheton	...	Self
Kathy Asheton	...	Self
Ron Asheton	...	Self (archive footage)
Harry Partch	...	Self (archive footage)
MC5	...	Themselves (archive footage)
John Sinclair	...	Self (archive footage)
Danny Fields	...	Self
Nico	...	Self (archive footage)
Mike Watt	...	Self

Storyline

An in-depth look at the legendary punk band, The Stooges.

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Plot Keywords:

punk rock | animated scene | rock band | band | scene during closing credits | 

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Taglines:

The story of The Stooges

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Genres:

Documentary | Music

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Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Stooges is one of celebrity chef Anthony Bourdains favorite bands.

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Connections

Features The Addams Family (1964)

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Soundtracks

We Will Fall
Written by Iggy Pop (James Osterberg Jr.), Ron Asheton (as Ronald Asheton), Scott Asheton, David Alexander
Performed by The Stooges
Courtesy of Elektra Entertainment Group
By arrangement with Warner Music Group Film & TV Licensing

User Reviews

Enjoyable documentary... "I don't wanna be punk, I just wanna be"

"Gimme Danger" (2016 release; 108 min.) is a documentary about the Stooges. As the movie opens, we are in 1973, with the band in a free fall and ready to call it a day, as we get Iggy, Steve MacKay, and other to comment about how bad it was. Pop, then 24 years old, moved back in with his parents in their trailer, After the movie's opening credits, we then go back in time, and we see the humble Ann Arbor roots of these guys, and the even humbler beginnings of the Iguanas and later the Stooges.

Couple of comments: this is the latest movie directed by indie film maker Jim Jarmusch. Here he brings the story of the Stooges, as told to us by the band members themselves, although let's be clear: Iggy gets most of the screen time. Turns out Iggy is quite funny and self-depreciating, certainly as to the early years, when he switch from drums ("I got tired of looking at butts", ha!) to singer and front man. It is quite amazing how the Stooges' sound evolved from the early avant-garde sound (Iggy: "it was like an airplane taking off") to the punk sound of the latter days (the "Raw Power" album). The footage is okay but there is surprisingly not much high quality concert footage (one of the better clips is the classic from their 1970 set at the Cincinnati Pop Festival where Iggy smears peanut butter all over himself while he is crowd-surfing). The lack of high quality footage is more than compensated by the gazillion pictures, which frankly suit the legacy of the Stooges better than the archival footage. The documentary thankfully spends little to no time explaining the 3 decades between the 1973 demise and the 2003 "reunification" (as Iggy terms it, "it's NOT a reunion"), and even the years since 2003 are dealt with in 10-15 minutes. The documentary smartly focused on the key years in the late 60s and early 70s, and that is what makes it so enjoyable to watch. No major revelations, just a solid look at the Stooges. As of course Iggy has the documentary's last words: "I don't wanna be metal, I don't wanna be alternative, I don't want to be punk. I just wanna be".

"Gimme Danger" premiered at the Cannes film festival earlier this years, and finally opened at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati this weekend. I couldn't wait to see it. The Friday early evening screening where I saw this at was not attended well (2 other guys besides myself), but I know this: all three of us laughed a lot and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, Hopefully "Gimme Danger" can find a wider audience via Amazon Instant Video and eventually on DVD/Blu-ray. If you are a fan of music and music history, you don't want to miss this. "Gimme Danger" is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 August 2016 (Norway)

Also Known As:

Gimme Danger

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$44,725, 30 October 2016

Gross USA:

$440,627

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$950,040

Company Credits

Production Co:

Low Mind Films, New Element Media

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Color:

Color Black and White