Director Floria Sigismundi's feature film debut of The Runaways is truly a remarkable film. Based on the memoir of lead singer Cherrie Currie,the film chronicles the band's rise and subsequent breakup in the late 1970s. I have seen Dakota Fanning play many different roles as a child actor and in this film she leaves those previous roles behind. I think her role in Hound Dog prepared her to take on more gritty roles and she pulled off Cherrie Curries naivety perfectly. Her portrayal of Cherrie starts out as somewhat innocent California valley girl,looking to make it big as a star,to the complete deterioration and after effects of drug abuse. Kristen Stewart does an amazing job playing Joan Jett. She literally becomes her in both the look and mannerisms. Her strongest scenes are the ones opposite Dakota Fanning,because it shows the strong friendship Joan and Cherrie had, before Cherrie left the group. Michael Shannon steals every scene he's in as the charismatic,yet Svengali-esque producer Kim Fowley.
I was not overly familiar with The Runaways music,so I had to learn a lot of their songs. I became an instant fan of their music,because they were a excellent mix of punk rock and glam. This is Floria Sigismundi's first film outside of directing music videos and I hope to see more feature films from her in the future. I enjoyed the film mainly for the music,but some viewers may object to some of the more racier scenes,because it involves teenagers. I recommend the film mostly for the mature audience,but it doesn't disrupt getting to hear these now classic rock songs. Grade: A
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