Hard Core Logo

I don't know if this movie is meant to be a mockumentary in the sense of satirizing punk bands or punk music documentaries. I'm not familiar enough with either to know, though I had seen the documentary Another State of Mind about thirteen years ago, for what that's worth. I've also seen this director's Highway 61, which was a lot of fun.

I wouldn't say it's like Spinal Tap, which while I enjoyed it, was more silly than funny. I liked Fear of a Black Hat more than Spinal Tap, perhaps because I was more familiar with the music it was poking fun at. Spinal Tap and Fear of a Black Hat have more in common than with Hard Core Logo. HCL has some funny moments, but no more so than one would expect from a documentary of a real band. The songs are not goofy either: there's no "Big Bottom" (Spinal Tap) or "Booty Juice" (Fear of a Black Hat) here.

I'm not sure what some have identified as "Canadian" about this film, apart from the locations. I don't think there was anything I didn't follow. Perhaps there were some things I didn't get without knowing that there was something to get?

I love "Hard Core Logo", a fine black comedy. Hugh Dillon, Callum Keith Rennie, John Pyper-Ferguson, Bernie Coulson, and Julian Richings as Bucky Haight all did a great job portraying an aging band that never lived up to it's own ambitions. Frankly, I am so tired of "This is Spinal Tap", a film I liked the first two times I saw it. It wore thin on me all too quickly. I still love HCL, and that has to be because it is based on Michael Turner's book. Turner's own experiences in the Hard Rock Miners informed his writing and that legitimacy was kept in tact in the film. Also, from a Canadian point of view, I liked it because it was a straight up story and a straight up film. Far too often it seems that Canadian filmmakers feel that they have to go out of their way to make odd/disturbing films that just come across as pretentious and 'faux-Euro', or make films designed to pander to the lowest common denominator of the Hollywood market. MacDonald made his own film for himself and I for one am grateful.

It resembles "Spinal Tap" only in that it's about a fictitious rock band on its way down. This is a more ambitious movie, and its mood is much darker -- while it has its comic moments, it's not a film to watch when you're feeling down.

This particular American viewer had no trouble with the Canadian references -- yes, we can tell Canadian cities apart and know exactly which Quebeckers the bassist was talking about. In fact, the Canadianness of the movie was part of its appeal, and I'm not just talking about the stunning scenery. I do have to admit overlooking the angle about Canadian musicians selling out to the American scene -- I was more attuned to the sellout on the personal rather than national level. Bands in the States lose musicians to L.A., too.

At its core, this is a movie about friendship and betrayal, and in the end, betrayal wins. It's a hard, honest movie, not easy watching but worth the effort.

(Parents, this one isn't for the kiddies -- lots of obscenity and some violence, though none of it is gratuitous to the story.)

Let's get it over with right from the beginning: the only thing that "This Is Spinal Tap!" and "Hard Core Logo" have in common is the documentary set up. While Spinal Tap was a comedy that - as the name of the genre "mockumentary" suggests - mocked the heavy metal scene, "Hard Core Logo" is a character study that takes an honest look at a band and life on the road. Actually, the whole framework is rather unnecessary in this movie as it serves no real purpose and characters didn't act like they were in front of a camera (unlike say "The Office", where people behaved as if they were aware of being filmed). Besides, the pictures are shot too beautifully anyway for this to feel like a real documentary. That's not to say "Hard Core Logo" isn't realistic, though. The movie gives us a quite real impression of being in a punk band, caught between different agendas, personalities, power struggles and the sheer need to survive. This is why, apart from a few moments that will make you chuckle, "Hard Core Logo" isn't really trying to be funny, either. Just like real life the tragic moments outweigh the comedic ones by far. The acting is great and the soundtrack is accurate, two very important things to make a movie about punk rock work. Apart from maybe the drummer the band members aren't over-subscribed and you can really see guys like Joe Dick or Billy Talent playing in actual bands (guess what, Hugh Dillon actually was the singer of his own band, The Headstones). "Hard Core Logo" works on every level and is very entertaining to watch, too. There are quite a few details in the story hinted at rather subtly, which you're probably not going to get the first time around, so a second or third viewing is recommended.

Really interesting film for anyone familiar with the hardcore music scene that deals with the problems and moral dilemmas of a reunited band. The problem is the movie is mismarketed as a comedy. Humor in the movie is quite present though dark and dry (though still very funny). This movie is actually quite a bit better than spinal tap. It's not mocking a bad band of a genre, but exploring the problems of the scene by looking at what's viewed to be a good one. The only similarity between this film and spinal tap is the narrative framework, which is that of a documentary, though in this film, that device becomes less obtrusive, and in all honesty could have been removed. Also, this movie has much more of a human heart than a film like spinal tap or fear of a black hat (another movie that got lumped into the "mockumentary" genre). The big problem I think is that this movie is represented as a comedy, and it's as dramatic as it is humorous. Terrific ending too. Recommended to those who enjoy dark comedies and punk rock.