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Title: Nowhere Boy
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| CONSUMER ADVICE |
Parents, there is a substantial amount of lanuage and sex. Recommended for ages 17 and up. |
The Beatles is one of the greatest rock bands of all time. Heck, in all likelihood they ARE the greatest rock band of all time! What John, Paul, George, and Ringo accomplished in music history is nothing short of amazing. What John Lennon contributed to the world is almost mind staggering. Not only did he create some of the greatest songs of all time but he spearheaded a new fashion sense, paved the way for the British invasion, made public nudity an art form, and made protesting your president seem like a pretty cool idea. Before all that though he was just a regular boy as seen in “Nowhere Boy.” This film tells the story of John (Aaron Johnson) before he formed The Beatles. He has an unusual childhood in that he lives with his aunt and uncle.
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When his uncle dies he discovers his real mother lives about a block away from him and has so for many years. He seeks her out to have a relationship with her and finds out she’s actually pretty nice. Cheerful, energetic, willing to teach him the banjo, he starts to become confused as to why she’s been around but never really part of his life. His Aunt Mimi (Kristin Scott Thomas) has the answers, but she’s a private woman who secretly protects John under a scowl and cold nature. She is easily the most complex character in this film. Along the way John meets Paul and George who would become instrumental in his future music career. Ringo never shows up in this film so I’m assuming he’s still underappreciated.
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“Nowhere Boy” is a movie I probably would have liked if it were a fictional film rather then based off a true story. I’ve actually seen two television films based on this same period in Johns life and this one isn’t significantly better. The best part of the film is Thomas’s role of John’s aunt. Her is a woman that is complex and deep, who has feelings but doesn’t allow her emotions to get in the way of her reasoning. It’s a great character and a performance worthy of an Oscar nomination. Otherwise though the whole thing ends feeling a bit empty. The movie never does get around to explaining how any of this effected John’s later life with The Beatles and we don’t even get a sense that he will ever form that famous band.
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It ends at a point where the journey is just getting started. Why? Is it because costs to license The Beatles music is just so high that they can’t get into the real story we want to see? Some of this is interesting but little of it has any real meaning. Over an hour of padding could be cut from this with the same effect. Hey, if Taylor Hackford could do it with Ray Charles complex life in “Ray” then Sam Tylor-Wood could do it here. I’ve seen countless documentaries on The Beatles, John Lennon, and the other band members. They never cease to amaze me. A proper feature film on this group is out there in some directors mind and I want to see it. Hopefully I will someday and music licensing costs won’t be a big issue anymore.
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