The '70s

I certainly hope no one took this movie as history. Music and events were chronologically incorrect throughout the entire 4 hours. It seems that the picture was made entirely to sell advertising time to record companies to advertise their re-released music of the 70s as if you couldn't hear every one of these songs on any given "Classic Rock" station in any given city at any given time. Events and moods were captured well but not chronologically correct - for example: How could 'Whatever Gets you Though the Night' be playing during the 1972 Presidential campaign when the song wasn't released until 1974? How did they get a clip of Jack Benny on the Tonight Show they were watching at Christmas 1975 when Benny died in December of 1974? Why was there a streaker at the 1972 Presidential election party when the streaking fad took place in winter/spring 1974? It seems today, as far as TV writers are concerned, the 1970s were just one year and everything happened during it! I was there for the 1970s and I can assure you that 1971 was very different from 1978 but you'd never know it based on this pseudo-restrospective. Obviously the makers of this film were not as concerned about historical accuracy, as they were with portraying every event they could remember that occurred in the 1970s. It didn't matter when or where in the 1970s, just fit it in where you can, the order doesn't matter. If history were taught this way, we'd never know the truth about anything.

Dont waste your time with this pathetic NBC attempt to boost lagging ratings, it is very much a Hackneyed rif-off of Forest Gump-type rememberances and pathos driven, late baby boomer sentimentality. Yuck! Even the actors are B A D, way too old to play college kids; not to mention the annoying and obvious 'Ally MacBeal'-'Melrose Place' type personalities and pretty bourgeoisie faces here. Vapid and Insulting. Click over to History channel instead.

The major events and hit songs of the decade are viewed through the eyes of four protagonists who graduate from Kent State University in 1970. The four are played by Vinessa Shaw, Brad Rowe, Amy Smart and Guy Torry.

People look down on this television production from 2000 because the story threads that link the various events are brisk and lack depth; but if the writers offered more depth it would be a 4-5 hour movie. Besides, I felt like I knew the characters by the end; they're not one dimensional and are all likable in one way or another.

Sure, there are some dubious melodramatics and acting, but "The 70s" entertainingly accomplishes what it sets out to do - highlight the significant happenings of the decade, starting with the Kent State shootings of May 4th, 1970, and on to Watergate, feminism, disco, the Guyana cult tragedy and so on, all to a soundtrack of 70's radio hits.

On the female front, Shaw is intelligent and winsome whereas Smart is flighty, but alluring. They coulda done more with them, but they do enough. Rowe comes across as a low-budget Brad Pitt while Torry is a compelling choice to represent black culture, his wife too (Leslie Silva).

The film runs 2 hours, 50 minutes, and was shot in Southern California with historical footage from all over the USA.

GRADE: B-

For those who have no idea what the 70's were all about, this is a good try to a good insight. Not totally accurate because of the limitations of the story, the movie manages to give an overall view of the era but does not accomplishes its purpose.

If you're in the right age bracket to remember the '70s fondly, you'll enjoy the music that permeates this cinematic travesty. Apart from that, you'll probably find yourself watching this 4-hour hodgepodge of cliches with your mouth hanging open in horror. It's astonishingly bad.