FM

This movie was very popular in 1978, largely on the strength of it's soundtrack. FM radio itself was just busting out in many smaller towns and the idea of this whole new spectrum of radio sound was a very new thing. This movie is the story of one LA FM station, they play cool music, promote cool concerts and take over the station when things go wrong for them. The story is largely forgettable, but in all actuality, it was all a promotion for the double-LP soundtrack ( now to be found in almost any thrift shop in the US ). Steely Dan make a good showing as does Linda Ronstadt. Jimmy Buffett does well also, this was just before he started becoming just a parody of himself as he began catering more to an audience of drunken yuppie "parrotheads". It's hard to want to recommend this movie, if you are interested in the time and the music back then, definately go see this. If you are a fan of "WKRP in Cincinatti", and heard that that TV show was based on this one, don't go in expecting a movie version of WKRP.

A film with a great soundtrack of the late 70's rock era although it belies the lyrics from the title song where Steely Dan sings about setting the mood for getting it on with a girl with funk and reggae because there is no funk or reggae in the movie. The film has a simple premise in the radio station staff rebels over the commercialization of what is a commercialized business to begin with. This is not a public or college station but regular commercial station but they take on the corporate world in a strike against the stations plans to be top 40 rock rather than free-form album rock with non-stop music and enlist their listeners help in their fight against the man. Despite this most of the songs in the movie aren't deep album cut album rock but mostly top 40 rock single releases. It does feature a great soundtrack in music by Steely Dan, The Eagles, Boston, Steve Miller, Boz Scaggs, Tom Petty, Bob Seger, Joe Walsh, The Doobie Brothers, Queen, Billy Joel, Walter Egan, Foreigner, Reo Speedwagon, and concert footage of Jimmy Buffett and Linda Ronstadt. A good cast which includes Eileen Brenna, Martin Mull, Clevon Little, Michael Brandon, Alex Karas and James Keach. There are some moments of good satirical comedy but kind of weak as a story but that's OK because it's fun ride in a rambling sort of way. David Myers is the film's cinematographer who compiled quite a resume in the 70's in music films and documentaries photographing Woodstock, Mads Dogs & Englishmen, The Grateful Dead, Soul to soul, Wattstax, Elvis on Tour and Renaldo & Clara. John Alonzo directs in his first and only theatrical film. He did go on to direct a couple of made-for TV movies but he had been a cinematographer and returned to photographing films. He had been a cinematographer on such films as Vanishing Point, Harold & Maude, sounder, Lady Sings the Blues and Chinatown and continued filming up until his death with such films as Scarface, Star Trek: Generations, Steel Magnolias and Cool World. although not a great film, this movie is worth a look. It debuted on screens in the spring of 1978 and is a great snapshot and soundtrack of the late 70's rock radio. I would give it a 7.0 out of 10.

This is one of my favorite "Radio" themed films, mainly because I work in radio. The characters in this movie remind me of many of my fellow co-works, on many levels.

The film's plot centers on Station Manager and Morning Man Jeff Dugan. Dugan has the right idea, in keeping the station "Q-Sky" as uncommercial as possible. He LOVES playing GOOD music and so dislikes the idea of selling too much airtime to advertisers. Especially when it is the Army that wants to buy airtime, with high spot rotation in prime time hours.

That doesn't sit well with Dugan, and he tries his best to avoid "cashing in" on the deal. Wow, imagine that, a Station Manager who refuses good money! Dugan even attempts to ignore his corporate boss' desire to accept this package. Dugan finally gets so tired of saying "no, no, no!" to the Army and his boss, that he quits.

The rest of the on-air and support staff like Dugan a lot, and they dislike the fact that he quit. So they plot revenge against the same people Dugan was fighting with. Their idea of revenge is to go on strike, on the air. They dump all the commercials and go wall-to-wall music.

If you tried something like this in corporate radio today, kiss your job goodbye. So many radio stations today have taken the approach that Dugan so willingly and unselfishly fought against.

So if you like films about radio, or if you want to get a glimpse of how radio really "should be" today, you might find this film worth watching. This movie includes a good musical soundtrack, with bits of songs that were big in the 70's

I was in radio in the area the movie took place in the late 1970's, most of my friends felt the movie was molded after 94.7 KMET, "The Mighty Met" which at the time was king, with KLOS always nipping at their heels. Sadly, corporate money won out, the MET went "NEW AGE" and KLOS survived. Remember Paraquat, Ace "Space" Young, "The Gonzer" and Jim Ladd to mention a few Met Cats! None of us even thought about "WKRP in Cincinnatti" as a off shoot to "FM" although it was a great show. Myself and many others worked at a station much like "WKRP" at one time or another! "FM" was excellent and reflected a wild time in radio, when there was some pretty weird music out there and some great ones too!

Hindsight beings what it is now some 27 years after it's release, FM fore tells the impending doom of commercial radio! If you're in the radio business you'll get the meaning of that for sure. FM also spawned the first multi artist soundtrack album that sold very well. The Movie can be a bit slow in places, but it chillingly fore tells the coming doom of radio under corporate control, over commercialization, and the stripping of the Jocks influence and power. Nice musical performances from Linda Ronstadt who was actually played on Rock Radio then, and Jimmy Buffett. Good lightweight entertainment. Tune in turn on, and never come down to earth with Q Sky!