Bovie Movie

The first volley in the never-ending “Presley movie” blitzkrieg, the made-for-TV Elvis: The Movie stars Kurt Russell as the King, Season Hubley as Priscilla, Pat Hingle as Col. Parker, Shelley Winters as Elvis’ mom, and Bing Russell (Kurt’s real-life father) as Elvis’ dad. The film recounts Presley’s life from age ten to his 1969 Vegas comeback. Presley imitator Ronnie McDowell expertly dubs in Kurt Russell’s renditions of “Love Me Tender,” “Heartbreak Hotel,” et al. When first telecast on February 11, 1979, the ratings for Elvis: The Movie went through the roof, even beating out a competing telecast of Gone With the Wind.

John Waters does a quirky spin on ’50s nostalgia in Cry-Baby, his musical homage to Rebel Without a Cause and Romeo and Juliet. Set in Baltimore in 1954 at the birth of rock & roll, the film features Johnny Depp as Wade “Cry-Baby” Walker. Depp is pure charisma as a juvenile delinquent with a permanent tear slithering down his cheek, a reminder of his state-executed parents. In the depths of his despair appears goody-goody girl Allison (Amy Locane), who has a sexual crush on Cry-Baby. But Allison’s Pat Boone-like boyfriend, Baldwin (Stephen E. Miller), the leader of the squares, is dead set against Cry-Baby and the rest of the juvenile delinquents and leads a revolt against them. In the resultant riot, the juvenile delinquents are blamed for the chaos, and Cry-Baby finds himself dispatched to reform school.

In this musical comedy-adventure starring self-proclaimed greatest band in the world Tenacious D, a pair of aspiring rock superstars attempt to convince the world of their true talents as they embark on a daring quest to acquire the supernaturally powered guitar pick that will finally allow them to fully realize their vast rock & roll potential. JB (Jack Black) is a na?ve Midwesterner whose strict Christian parents view his burning passion for heavy metal as a mortal sin. After his dad tears down every poster in his bedroom except for a Ronnie James Dio poster on the back of the door, the former Black Sabbath frontman instructs the aspiring young rocker to seek out his fortune no matter what the cost. Subsequently setting his sights on Hollywood and hellbent to take the world of rock music by storm, JB sneaks out his bedroom window and makes his way to Venice Beach, where he soon meets guitar-strumming slacker KG (Kyle Gass). With a future of rock & roll superstardom now well within their reach, JB and KG harness the power of Satan to form hellfire hard rock duo Tenacious D and set out on a quest to achieve musical immortality by stealing the mythical guitar pick said to instill its owner with unprecedented musical prowess.

Jacki (Gina Gershon, who also served as a producer) has always wanted to be a rock star. But after years of struggling to make it, she’s turning 40, and she’s thinking of giving it up. “Do you ever think about being 50 or 60 years old, hauling our gear around, passing out flyers, fighting with bookers, and still sweating around?” she asks her bandmates. Faith (Lori Petty), the talented lead guitarist, gives guitar lessons to hyperactive teens on the side. Faith is seriously involved with the much younger Sally (Shelly Cole of TV’s Gilmore Girls), the band’s good-natured drummer. Tracy (Drea de Matteo of HBO’s The Sopranos), the bass player, is a trust-fund baby with a substance abuse problem and a manipulative lowlife boyfriend, Nick (Ivan Martin). Jacki’s thoughts of quitting are put on hold when the band gets a shot at a recording contract for an independent label and a gig opening for X. Then Sally’s big brother, Animal (Marc Blucas, formerly of TV’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer), arrives in town, fresh out of prison, and stirs up Jacki’s romantic life. But when two tragic events shake the band, Jacki is again forced to consider finding something else to do with her life. Prey for Rock & Roll was written by Cheri Lovedog, based on her own experiences in the rock world. It was originally performed as a stage play at CBGB in New York. The stage production was directed by Robin Whitehouse, who gets a writing credit for the screenplay. The film marks the directorial debut of accomplished film music producer Alex Steyermark. It was shown at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival and the 2003 Tribeca Film Festival.

The Beatles’ early days as a struggling bar band are depicted in this fact-based drama, which tells the little-known story of original member Stuart Sutcliffe (Stephen Dorff). A close friend of John Lennon, Sutcliffe acts as the band’s original bassist, accompanying them on their early gigs in Liverpool and Hamburg, Germany. The friendship becomes strained, however, when Sutcliffe falls in love with a German art student and starts to question his commitment to the band. With Sutcliffe’s story taking center stage, the stories of the more famous Beatles largely fade into the background. The exception is John Lennon, thanks to a fierce performance by Ian Hart, who had previously portrayed the musician in the more intimate and provocative The Hours and the Times. While Backbeat does provide a new perspective on the band’s beginning, and numerous opportunities for a group of modern rock musicians to recreate the band’s energetic early performances, it never makes Sutcliffe’s story seem more than a footnote to musical history.