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24 Hour Party People (2002)
Every time another maudlin, artist-authorized music biopic arrives in theaters, the naysayers will invariably ask, “Hasn’t this movie ever seen Walk Hard?”
But is simply identifying and skirting tropes the limit of our music-movie imagination?
24 Hour Party People illuminates another path, as it chronicles the Manchester music boom—from 1970s post-punk to 1980s rave bands—through the unreliable eyes of TV personality-turned-label executive Tony Wilson.
Played with pitch-perfect insincerity by Steve Coogan, Wilson is the ideal vessel for both garishing and subverting the legend of this hotbed scene. He’s uncool from the first word; he’s older than all the musicians (Ian Curtis, Shaun Ryder) he comes to represent; he’s a money guy who’s bad with money; he’s a poser who actually does have some sneaky ideals.
The shifty protagonist lends himself a tone brilliantly managed by director Michael Winterbottom, who understands that Manchester doesn’t need this movie’s help to be cool. And in fact, poking a little fun at rock mythos may actually prolong its life. Tomorrow Theater, April 4.
Also Playing:
Academy: Matilda (1996), The Switchblade Sisters (1975) and Johnny Guitar (1954), April 1–2. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), Legend (1985) and After Hours (1985), April 3–7. Cinema 21: The Graduate (1967), April 4. Cinemagic: April Fool’s Day (1986) and Adaptation (2002), April 1. Synechdoche, New York (2008) and Seven Samurai (1954), April 2. Dark Angel: The Ascent (1994), April 3. Drag Me to Hell (2009), April 3 and 5. Wrong Turn (2003), April 4 and 7. The Descent (2005), April 4, 6 and 7. Slither (2006), April 4 and 6. Ikiru (1952) and The Being (1983), April 5. Clinton: Flow (2024), April 2. FernGully: The Last Rain Forest (1992) and The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), April 4. The Last Unicorn (1982), April 7. Hollywood: Black Samurai (1977), April 2. Dead Mountaineer’s Hotel (1979), April 3. Brokeback Mountain (2005), April 6. Killer Angels (1989), April 7. Tomorrow: Demolition Man (1993), April 3. The Decline of Western Civilization (1981), Decline Part II: The Metal Years (1988) and Decline: Part III (1988), April 5.
