MovieChat Forums > The Runaways (2010) Discussion > 8/10. Here's why:

8/10. Here's why:

posted 9 years ago by IMDB_Vits
1 reply | jump to latest

People have said that THE RUNAWAYS lacks insight. I felt that at first, but then I read that it’s based on a book written by Cherie Curie and that Joan Jett was an executive producer of the film. And so I reached a conclusion: Those two just aren’t very complex people. In the movie, CHERIE is portrayed as an innocent girl who’s oversexualized before time, and JOAN is portrayed as a tough chick. And maybe that’s all they were. That being said, Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning's performances are very good and, in certain scenes, they add more layers to their characters than the script can. Michael Shannon's is good too. The makers couldn’t get the life rights of the other band members, which is why they’re practically extras here. Too bad. Specially because one of them is played by the talented Alia Shawkat, who's not given anything to do. Visually, the movie is marvelous. Not only it captures the look of that time; it also helps each scene be more exciting and/or emotional.

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Any thoughts?

[–] jmiller1918 9 years ago

I agree with your comments and gave the same rating. They really nailed the look and somehow the "feel" of 1975! Felt like I was time-travelling.

I think the problem of "depth" is legitimately raised. In the past we've had films that celebrated perseverance and overcoming the odds to become famous and successful; and films that chronicled a burn-out and decline. We've essentially seen both these stories (Joan and Cherie) before, many times, although not usually in the same movie.

Was it the drugs, was it life on the road, or was it something else that drove Cherie out of the band? The tensions with other band members? Just everything all together?

As you say, maybe there's not much else to understand about these people.