Mountain FogFAME (the remake) review
February 1st 2010 06:56
FAME official poster (copyright protected: see below)
This film, (USA cinematic release in 2009), is a remake of the original film of the same title, first released in 1980. I cannot compare the two, as I did not see the first film, as I was already ensconced in our own national theatre school (N.I.D.A.) which left me no time outside of studies and production work.
After reading some of the online information about the original film, I was made aware of an immediate difference between the two films; a character’s exclusion from the 2009 version leaving me puzzled. I know all the character’s names were changed, but I did not expect a particular character ‘type’ to be excluded.
One of the characters in the 1980 film was openly gay and dealing with his life and others’ attitudes and prejudices, but this character is missing from the 2009 version. All we see is a brief (seconds) appearance of a gay caricature type. Why would they cut that character out? I would have thought it even more relevant and topical to today’s world; given the societal nexus of a more openly ‘gay’ attitude with the de-criminalization of homosexuality, clashing with the persistent homophobia that still permeates all levels of society to some degree.
The ‘gay’ character was not the only one to suffer from a new re-write; all the main characters were re-written, with near equal time on screen for all of them, which created new problems for the production.
The film tries to cover too much ground in one small film; you cannot gain any depth in characterisation when you flit from one character to the other, unlike a television serial which has a whole year or more to develop its characters. This leaves the audience feeling less involved with the film and its protagonists, making you a slightly disengaged observer, unless, you went through a theatre school yourself.
I found the film actually quite realistic in many ways; starting with the rip off merchants waiting to take advantage of gullible young talent, both monetarily and sexually. The effect of working all day and night, in study, practise and production development does produce the effect of knowing other students on a more superficial level, however, you always get to know some fellow students very well and develop affections and friendships, as is natural for the social being.
Even though I felt the film did portray many aspects of theatre school life realistically, for a film, it would not quite work for the majority of audiences, who understandably want to become more involved in the life of the characters portrayed.
Fame is still entertaining, and worth a look on a slow day at home, with some good dance sequences. It also can serve as an informal guide, in a way, for those wanting to enter the entertainment world through formal studies.
The oddest aspect of the film is the huge success of its theme song, “Fame”, which only appears at the end, over the credits. If I had re-directed it, I would have incorporated the song into an end of school year performance, to me that would have made more sense.
On the cast; generally they are ‘all American’ good looking teen types, including; Naturi Naughton, Asher Book and Paul Iacono, all of whom I expect we will see more of over the next few years. The young ‘stars’ are supported by able character actors, such as Kelsey Grammer, who appears all too briefly, so little can be made of Grammer’s engaging talents. Charles C. Dutton has slightly more screen time and delivers a very realistic character, as the drama tutor, who tries to help a young balck actor battle with his personal demons.
Definitely better than a lot of ‘rainy day fodder’ films, with the choreographed sequences for the dance numbers being quite entertaining.
ICON FILM DISTRIBUTION is releasing FAME on DVD & BLU RAY FEBRUARY 3RD 2010.
IMAGE CREDITS:
PRODUCTION POSTER IMAGE OWNERSHIP AND COPYRIGHT PRESUMED THAT OF THE DISTRIBUTOR AND/OR PRODUCTION HOUSE; ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
PERMISSION: FAIR USE RATIONALE, FOR REVIEW PURPOSES ONLY, LOW RES. IMAGE AND NOT FOR COPYING.
Directed by
Kevin Tancharoen
Produced by
Mark Canton
Gary Lucchesi
Tom Rosenberg
Richard Wright
Written by
Allison Burnett
Starring
Naturi Naughton
Collins Pennie
Kay Panabaker
Asher Book
Kherington Payne
Walter Perez
Anna Maria Perez de Taglé
Paul Iacono
Kristy Flores
Paul McGill
Debbie Allen
Kelsey Grammer
Charles S. Dutton
Megan Mullally
Music by
Mark Isham
Cinematography
Scott Kevan
Editing by
Myron Kerstein
Studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Lakeshore Entertainment
United Artists
Distributed by MGM (USA)
Entertainment Film Distributors (UK)
Release date(s) September 25, 2009 (US and UK)
September 24, 2009 (AUS)
Running time 107 minutes
Country United States
Language English
Budget $18 million
Gross revenue $41,713,690[1]
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Comment by Matt Shea
20/20 Filmsight
Comment by Mountain Fog
Infognito
Screen Trek
QUOTE ME NO QUOTES!
tanx, and I now want to see the original too!
This film fails to capture the tensions, thrills and roller coaster emotions associated with live performance.
The stage show Chorus Line did so brilliantly, leaving people yelling for more. I expect the film of Chorus Line will be much the same, (hopefully).
Sadly, this film appears to be a remake to earn more dollars, than embellish the original drama.
cheers
fog