‘Almost Famous’ Is a Coming-Of-Age Tale Full of 60s and 70s Nostalgia

Photo courtesy of DreamWorks Pictures and Columbia Pictures.

Almost Famous was released on September 13, 2000. Its premise focuses on William Miller (Patrick Fugit), a teenager who gets the chance to write an article for Rolling Stone magazine on up-and-coming band, Stillwater. The comedy-drama film is semi-autobiographical as it chronicles director Cameron Crowe’s real life experiences as he was a writer for Rolling Stone. The film garnered critical acclaim and received 4 Academy Award nominations. 

Almost Famous is not your average coming-of-age story. It’s not like the films we know now like Booksmart and Lady Bird. The film is set in the 1960s and 1970s. Times were different then. Social media didn’t exist. People actually talked to each other face-to-face rather than on a mobile device.

The story draws you in from the beginning. It opens with a young William (Michael Angarano) who discovers records for the first time because of his sister, Anita (Zooey Deschanel). The rest of film focuses on 15-year-old William who gets the opportunity to go on the road with Stillwater and write a Rolling Stone magazine article on the band.

I enjoyed the story because it felt authentic and genuine. There was no sugarcoating anything here. It portrays the imperfections of a group of people really well. I enjoyed the bond between William and Russell (Billy Crudup). Their chemistry was present and they were entertaining to watch.

This film features quite an ensemble cast. At the time, no one really knew who most of these actors were.

Patrick Fugit portrays William Miller. Fugit stars in Cameron Crowe’s heartwarming film We Bought a Zoo in 2011 along with Matt Damon and Scarlett Johansson.

Billy Crudup portrays Russell Hammond. Crudup has appeared in numerous films after his appearance in this film. His most recent endeavor is portraying Cory Ellison in Apple TV+’s The Morning Show. Season 2 will be premiering this Friday, September 17th!

Frances McDormand portrays Elaine Miller, William and Anita’s mother. McDormand has went on to become of the most acclaimed actresses of her generation. Her most recent performance in Nomadland won her an Academy Award for Best Actress at the 2021 Oscars.

Kate Hudson portrays Penny Lane. Her performance was nominated for an Academy Award and garnered critical acclaim. This is probably my favorite role of her career so far. Penny is one of those complex characters that are so mysterious and intriguing that you wonder what’s going on inside her head.

Jason Lee portrays Jeff Bebe, the lead vocalist of Stillwater. Lee went on to star in the Alvin and the Chipmunks films.

Zooey Deschanel portrays Anita Miller, William’s older sister. Deschanel went onto star in Elf, 500 Days of Summer, and the hit sitcom, New Girl, as Jessica Day.

There are also appearances from Anna Paquin, Jimmy Fallon, Eric Stonestreet, and Rainn Wilson.

I think the main thing I love about this film is the setting. The production and costume design makes you feel like you’re really in the 60s and 70s. Oddly enough, it’s a 2000s film. You can tell. The fuzziness of the picture but it’s really good video tape quality. I love the vintage vibes.

The soundtrack is perfection. The scene where they all sang Tiny Dancer made me happy cry. Nancy Wilson of the band, Heart, was Crowe’s wife at the time and she co-wrote 3 of 5 Stillwater songs. Musician Peter Frampton wrote the other two with Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready playing lead guitar on all of the Stillwater songs. You can’t get anymore authentic than that.

 

 

Almost Famous is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video and Paramount+.

Director: Cameron Crowe

Cast: Patrick Fugit, Billy Crudup, Kate Hudson, Frances McDormand

Producers: Cameron Crowe, Ian Bryce