Vinyl

Vinyl is just a fun movie. The movie is fantastic and you can tell it was a labor of love to get this film made. No, it's not going to win an Academy Award (well, maybe for the soundtrack), but what's wrong with 90 minutes of good entertainment and a story that will have you leaving the theater with a smile on your face? I was fortunate enough to attend the American premiere in New York City. Back then, distribution was seen as a major issue. It's good to see the film is getting on some screens in the UK. I'd certainly like to go see it again and hope it can get on some screens here in the States. I was lucky enough to talk to director Sara Sugarman and -- unlike what the twit at the bottom of the screen said -- found her to be utterly charming. You could see the dedication and sacrifice she put in to get this film made.

Go see this movie!

Wow, it was great to catch up with Phil Daniels after all these years! Living in the USA, I literally hadn't seen him in anything since I ventured into a Mpls. theater in late '79 for my initial viewing of "Quadrophenia". Oh, I'd heard him 'rapping' on Blur's "Parklife" and as the lead voice in "Chicken Run", but it was my first actual Phil sighting since the 70's! And I've got to say, he can still bring it as a lead actor. We're roughly the same age, so please keep it going, Phil. It's nice to see there's still hope for the over 55 crowd when you're getting plum roles, even if I'm still sitting here at this god-awful desk.

As for the movie, I'm going with a six rating. I was unfamiliar with Mike Peters' 2004 hoax where he released a song under a pseudonym, but I'm glad he was able to pull one over on the music industry which ultimately led to this film. And I always liked The Alarm, even if they were slagged off as short-lived "U2 wannabes" in the states.

Plenty of laughs in this file which is loosely based on a true story (and full of in-jokes for those in the know). It could easily have fallen into the trap of being predictable but it doesn't. It comes over as fresh, quirky and fun. The serious moments are very natural, not forced, the music is good and the young band are very easy on the eye for the younger viewers. For the rest of us, there's Phil Daniels as the ever-optimistic Johnny Jones and Keith Allen, looking typically curmudgeonly as Minto, plus some well-aimed swipes at the contemporary record industry. Very much in the tradition of Very Annie Mary or The Full Monty.

Not the be confused with the 2016 TV show, 'Vinyl', directed by Sara Sugarman, is a quirky obscure 2012 musical comedy movie, which is a fictionalised version of the famous 2004 music hoax by 70's punk rockers, The Alarm to expose the ageism that unfortunately plagues the Music industry.

In this loose retelling of the story, Johnny Jones (played by Phil Daniels, who you may remember from the classic Blur single, 'Parklife') who was in the vintage punk band, Weapons of Happiness reunites with his old band mates after the funeral of a friend. They then get back together for a drunken jam session the following night, and come up with a very ear worm-ey tune, with the potential to be a big hit called 'Free Rock And Roll'. The only problem is, nobody wants to sign these middle-aged rockstars to a big major label, so Johnny has the idea of hoodwinking the bigoted big record companies by hiring a bunch of teenagers to front a fictional band to lip sync to their music, and coincidentally enjoy quite a bit of success!

Despite it being done on a very low budget, and the whole film feeling like it was filmed and edited on a consumer grade turn of the millennium camcorder (not sure if this is intentional to go with the punk aesthetic), the script is very funny, and the acting, for the most part is pretty good. I also feel the title the movie is sort of misleading, as vinyl records have basically nothing to do with the plot of the film, and I think it would've been a lot more successful if it had been called 'Free Rock and Roll'.

It might look cheap, but it's a film with a lot of charm - as the old saying goes, don't judge a book by it's cover! Interestingly, the late Terry Jones from Monty Python fame was a fan of this film.

And before I go, after you watch this movie, I guarantee you that you will get 'Free Rock and Roll' completely stuck in your head - I'm honestly quite surprised it wasn't a hit in the real world, as it's probably on the catchiest songs I've ever heard in my life!

Free Rock and Roll! Free Rock and Roll! Free Rock and Rooooollllllll!!!!!!!!!

Not sure what the last review was about, obviously saw a different film to me. I saw this at the Raindance Film Festival and loved it. A crowd pleaser that was great fun. Almost plays like a continuation of Quadrophenia, see Phil Daniels 30 years on. The young kid in it who plays Drainpipe is a face to watch out for. Considering this is obviously a low budget film the production is great. But it's the story that wins you over most of all. The humour reminded me of Full Monty. Nice to see the UK making films like this again. Want to watch it again and will buy the DVD when it comes out. Hope it gets released and does well so more like this get made.