Review of The Runaways (2010) by Mcgoohan215 . — 28 Apr 2012

I liked this film a lot. I used to listen to their music, especially Joan Jett's work with the Blackhearts, quite a bit so you have to take this from the perspective of a fan.

Dakota Fanning gives a decent performance as Cherie Currie,.

I've always had a theory about child actors where they are like wine, they become better with the aid of one or two films and this is one of Dakota's.

Kirsten Stewart gives a great performance as Joan Jett, who nowadays gets a lot of flack for doing the Twillight movies but she really isn't that bad an actress.

Also, Micheal Shannon was pretty amusing as producer Kim Fowley.

Outside of Cherie and Joan the rest of The Runaways seemed a bit underrepresented though granted , after the disbanding, Joan Jett was the only one to get a succesful solo career.

Another thing noteworthy is that Kirsten and Dakota supply their own vocals, as Runaways songs like 'Cherry Bomb' and 'Queens of Noise' are featured in the film with new versions. Even though it does make you wish for the original studio versions, it is a better solution than having them lipsync to the studio albums.

Speaking of music, the soundtrack is great including the non-Runaways material with artists such as David Bowie, The Sex Pistols and the Stooges.

The visuals were great, from the compelling scenes of Cherrie's overusage of drugs to specific points in their career with the live gig in Japan standing out with great attention to detail even going so far as matching instruments and equipment.

Compare the original gig to the film and you'll see what I mean.

Overall, a film worth the watch.