Almost Famous (Directed by Cameron Crowe, 2000)

This may be a narrow point of view, but it seems that almost anybody, no matter how uptight, religious, or conservative, can appreciate the seductive draw of the lifestyle of a 70’s rock star. After all, the rock and roll existence contains all the flourishes of human indulgence: sex, fame, glory, and money. Whom among us do these things not tempt? Perhaps that is why Cameron Crowe’s “Almost Famous” is so appealing at first?

We are drawn into a world of art and beauty, punctuated by overt sexuality and seemingly consequence-free drug use. We are pulled towards an entire “industry of cool” where creativity reigns and love is free. And despite the few negative results that are shown in the film, no one dies, and in the end everyone are still friends.

In the post-70’s world however, most of us understand the trappings of such hippie extravagances and are well aware of the harsh side of a life of hedonism. We have been shown it again and again in lame biopics about Jim Morrison, Janis Joplin, and countless others gone too soon. While Crowe does his best to avoid the familiar clichés that come when showing the dark side of the rock star life (the overdose, the band break-up, etc.), he does not always succeed.

If the film’s point is not to completely glorify the sexy excesses of rock stardom, it is instead to make clear the struggle that occurs within a critic in the face of them. Nowhere is this struggle more obvious than in young William, whose maturing ability as a writer becomes compromised by his blatant adoration for the musicians he covers.

Before he ever dreams of his possible assignment to travel with “Stillwater,” William is warned by his mentor, Lester Bangs, that they will try to befriend and corrupt him. Lester’s best advice to him is that in order to be a rock journalist and a true critic, he must be “honest and unmerciful.” This phrase gets straight to the heart of the movie and is central to its message. The words are repeated again at the end of the film to drive the point home.

But between the first time William hears these words and the last time, he does not comprehend them. Like Dorothy in the “Wizard of Oz,” he knows the answer all along but he must still learn it for himself. Only when he has been fully used and his fantasy is near shattered does he realize what he must do. In order to “be a true friend” to the band, he must take Lester’s advice and be brutally honest and authentic in his reporting.

Exalting the band with fabrications and partial truths will only “further the big business of rock and roll” and dilute the purity of a beautiful thing. And no matter how huge the egos that are involved in it, rock ‘n roll as an art form is a thing of beauty. Money does not help it, fame will not nourish it, and drugs… well, drugs might be useful, but the point is that music is art and art has always relied on the truth for inspiration. Everyone knows that the truth is not always pretty, but as Keats said, “Beauty is truth, [and] truth beauty” and “that is all [you] need to know.”