The 27 Club

Quick review: The film chronicles the road trip of a distraught musician, Elliot, and a hired- driver, Three Words. (Named three words because all of his lines, I believe, consist of only three words). Elliot's best friend, and band-mate, just died of a cocaine overdose and joined the infamous 27 club. This is, of course, the name given to all of the celebrities who died tragically at the age of 27. Along the road trip, the two meet a nice Irish girl who accompanies them to Montana, and eventually New York to attend the deceased's funeral. Everything really comes together in this film, and makes it a true indie masterpiece. Joe Anderson's portrayal of a struggling musician is captivating, and he is complemented by fantastic performances from David P. Emrich and Jimmy Hager. Along with that, the stunning cinematography, fantastic direction, and original screenplay are really a formula for perfection. If you want a touching, thought-provoking, moving film, I highly recommend The 27 Club.

Sometimes you just get lost and loose hope. It seems musicians, successful or not are a very complicated group of people. I have known several hundred including my family. There is a lot of truth to this movie ,and humans in general. I get it, when your done, your done. It's the people that love you that have to find understanding and not make it about them. The movie may not be for everyone but it certainly is a good realistic walk down suicides dark road. Life is challenging and people think that fame and fortune is perfect. It's not unless you have been around millionaires and billionaires you will never understand. People demand a lot from musicians and when you have nothing more offer what's left?

I had the good fortune to watch the movie's world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival 2008. It's a moving, thoughtful and yet highly entertaining movie with incredibly gorgeous cinematography.

This is not your same old same old "road trip movie" nor is it one of the well known stories about a band. It's a little bit different and even surprising at times.

The only flaw I can see in this movie is the last quarter of the movie which seems a bit too constructed and maybe even a bit rushed. Then again, the ending is really well chosen and makes you leave the movie with on an upbeat note.

The acting is great. Joe Anderson is fantastic! He's able to show the difference nuances of his character and to transport what's haunting and driving him. The rest of the cast is believable and convincing too. It's a true character driven story which never gets boring.

I highly recommend it to anyone who's in for 85 minutes with gorgeous pictures, great music, honest feelings and fantastic acting. Kudos to everybody and especially Erica Dunton! Love this movie.

One advantage (or disadvantage, as the case may be) of attending film festivals is that trends become readily apparent. Within one 24-hour period here at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival I saw three road films -- all involving two guys and a girl. Within that same 24-hour period I also saw three films with suicide as a central plot point -- two in a row, in fact. One was "The 27 Club," and it combines both -- it's a road movie, with two guys and a girl, with suicide at its core. And even that's not totally original. In fact, one of my Top Picks of the past couple of years was Wristcutters: A Love Story, which was -- you guessed it -- a road movie with suicide as a central theme. Yet "The 27 Club" is a moving, poignant film which stands out among the rest.

"The 27 Club" takes its title from a quip by Kurt Cobain's mother after his death in 1994, noting that, in addition to her son, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Brian Jones, Jim Morrison, and a host of other musicians had all taken their own lives at the age of 27. The film opens with one half of the fictional band The Finns, 27-year-old Tom Wallace (played admirably by James Forgey, mostly in flashbacks, of course), dying by his own hand. The bandmate he left behind, Elliot Kerrigan (Joe Anderson), sets out on the road with a grocery bag boy as his enlisted driver (David Emrich) along with Irish student Stella (Bono's daughter Eve Hewson) as a travel companion. The purpose of the trip and ultimate goal involve several mysteries, enough to keep the viewer guessing along the way.

While the three are certainly unlikely travel mates, always making for good drama, "The 27 Club" is really a one-man show with lead actor Joe Anderson (Becoming Jane, Across the Universe) carrying the film from start to finish. His tortured soul of a rock star is frighteningly brilliant and totally believable. Still, "The 27 Club" is mainly story-driven and writer/director Erica Dunton has penned a clever script with just enough gallows humor to keep the movie from becoming too depressing. After all, how do you laugh when someone has just offed themselves? Through the use of flashbacks, the film often reverts to a non-linear narrative. Rather than confuse the viewer, though, it actually gives the film a heightened sense of urgency which only deepens the mysteries at the heart of the film.

Cinematographer Stephen Thompson elegantly captures the beauty and lush landscape of the American west, with its sweeping vistas and stunning sunsets. "The 27 Club" has a true indie feel, with copious use of natural lighting and an original rock soundtrack that adds and connects to the film like few others do -- the songs are actually written and performed by The Finns, the fictional band featured in the story itself. This apparent contradiction is resolved when one learns that the movie itself created the musical act, as life truly imitates art.

If "The 27 Club" seems heavy, well, it can be depending on one's own experience. The obvious caveat to anyone who has suffered a loss, especially to suicide: the film may either salt old wounds or be cathartic, depending on the individual. There are messages here but they are muted, not in-your-face with words of wisdom spouting forth from scene to scene. Despite its familiar themes, the story is ultimately unpredictable, with surprising payoffs at every turn. "The 27 Club" has enough originality and heart to make it worth the trip.

Points for originality here but that's about it. Subpar acting, disjointed storytelling and the murkiest most annoying sound mixing you will ever encounter. So bad it's hard to get through it, but I did. There's worse out there but there's so much more that's better. Next time the production team should focus less on trying to be unique and more on trying to be palatable.