Hard Core Logo

Well... I really like this movie! I'm not going to go into the whole "Yay Canada" bit... because, well... we know we make good movies, no need to constantly pat ourselves on the back. Hey, just look at "American Beer"... love that too! Anyway, on to business... this was a great movie... Hugh Dillon is a great actor, as well as an accomplished musician (Headstones rock!!!), and does a great job. He really knows the role... being the lead singer for a band himself... he brought something unique to the role... something a conventional "actor" couldn't have, which I liked.

I must comment on the ending... it completely blew me away... I sat there while the credits began to role wondering what had just happened. That is what makes this movie so great... very few movies can do that for me. Congratulations go to Kevin MacDonald, he did a fine job!!

**** out of *****

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?

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.

This is easily all around one of the best Canadian films ever

made. Yes it is a mockumentary, yes it is follows around a rock band

(rockumentary) but for every other reason this really should not be

compared to Spinal Tap. It really isn't a comedy, although it has some great moments in it.

It's also not about a band "struggling with fame" which is what

EVERY OTHER rock movie is about (Almost Famous, That Thing

You Do, Spinal Tap, The Doors, you name it). Just four guys

holding on to a dream that should have faded years ago, all the

while trying not to kill each other. I always knew Hugh Dillon was really the lead singer for the

Headstones, so I realized it wasn't really a documentary but

thought Hard Core Logo the band might still have existed and this

was a tribute. Not the case, but that takes nothing away from the

movie. They say not to watch this movie if you're in a band because it'll

make you never want to play. At the same time, I think anyone who

has been in a band will appreciate it that much more picturing how

their little arguments would be amplified to 10 years later. It's an

overall great gut check to picture just ow much you love playing

music, especially if noone wants to listen.

To try and comment on this film without mentioning Spinal Tap would be hard considering not only all the comments that have gone before but also the synopsis provided on this site. And the fact that not even real Rockumentary's can be reviewed without mentioning it hints at the brilliance of that film. Hard Core Logo, is not, however, Spinal Tap......and it's none the worse for it.

Hard Core Logo is an intelligent drama (with the occasional comic moment) about the intense love between two friends and their mutually destructive force on each other when their paths once again entwine together years after the dissolution of their band.

The copy I watched was pretty pore so I can't really comment on the cinematography but I can imagine, from the fuzzy version I did see, that its strikingly beautiful in it's own slightly decrepit way. The plot line is almost non-existent leaving the main focus on the four members of the band, mainly founding members Joe Dick and Billy Talent.

So without good actors this film would sink. As it is the director has pulled fantastic, three dimensional, heart rending performances from both Hugh Dillon and Callum Keith-Rennie. Hugh Dillon's Joe Dick is a self destructive black hole that pulls in those around him. His love for Billy can never be doubted but he can't stand to think he's been left behind and will do almost anything to bring Billy back into his life. Dillon's energy and screen presence is quite extraordinary.

Billy on the other hand is trying to get out, not just for money reasons but because he sees it as a way of salvaging his life from his group of self destructing band mates. Keith-Rennie's performance is all in the close ups of his face or his performance in the background of a scene while watching those around him. Billy talks crap but his face never lies.

well, at least that was my take on this film...and that really is where Hard Core Logo comes into it's own. With so much of what the characters actually mean not being said (they chose, instead, to spout the generally expected views of a rock band) it really does depend on the viewer what film they watch. Bruce McDonald is a director that knows the beauty of well acted silence. They don't need to say anything for us to know exactly what these characters are feeling. Truly spectacular.

But I'm rambling, seriously, watch it, don't watch it, but if you don;t you're genuinely missing out!!