The Runaways (2010)
Average Rating: 6.2/10
Reviews Counted: 178
Fresh: 122 | Rotten: 56
Viewers expecting an in-depth biopic will be disappointed, but The Runaways is as electric as the band's music, largely thanks to strong performances from Michael Shannon, Dakota Fanning, and Kristen Stewart.
Average Rating: 6.4/10
Critic Reviews: 39
Fresh: 25 | Rotten: 14
Viewers expecting an in-depth biopic will be disappointed, but The Runaways is as electric as the band's music, largely thanks to strong performances from Michael Shannon, Dakota Fanning, and Kristen Stewart.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.3/5
User Ratings: 84,712
My Rating
Movie Info
The story of the groundbreaking '70s female rock group the Runaways is recounted in this River Road Entertainment production focusing on the duo of guitarist/vocalist Joan Jett (portrayed by Twilight's Kristen Stewart) and lead vocalist/keyboardist Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning) as they navigate a rocky road of touring and record label woes under the malevolent eye of abusive manager Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon) during their teen years. Acclaimed video artist Floria Sigismondi directs from her
Watch It Now
Cast
-
Kristen Stewart
Joan Jett -
Dakota Fanning
Cherie Currie -
Michael Shannon
Kim Fowley -
Stella Maeve
Sandy West -
Scout Taylor-Compton
Lita Ford -
Alia Shawkat
Robin -
Riley Keough
Marie Currie -
Johnny Lewis
Scottie -
Tatum O'Neal
Cherie's Mom -
Brett Cullen
Cherie's Dad -
Hannah Marks
Tammy -
Jill Andre
Aunt Evie -
Ray Porter
Band Member -
Kiaya Snow
Cashier -
Allie Grant
Club Girl -
Shammy Dee
DJ -
Aaron Parker Mouser
Fat Employee -
Peggy Stewart
Grandma Oni -
Robert Romanus
Guitar Teacher -
Jay Thames
Headliner's Roadie -
Masami Kosaka
Japanese Journalist -
Masayuki Yonezawa
Japanese Photographer -
Hiroshi Sakata
Japanese Promoter -
P.D. Mani
Cake Shop Manager -
Mickey Petralia
Record Executive -
Antonella Sigismondi
Rockabilly Saleslady -
Nick Eversman
Rocker Boy -
Keir O'Donnell
Rodney Bingenheimer -
Lisa Long
Sandy's Mom -
J.R. Nutt
Skinny Employee -
Alejandro Patino
Grocery Store Manager -
John Konesky
Studio Engineer -
Tim Winters
Wolfgang -
Adam Silver
Boy in Audience -
Koji Wada
Announcer -
-
-
-
-
-
ADVERTISEMENT
The Runaways Trailer & Photos
All Critics (179) | Top Critics (40) | Fresh (123) | Rotten (57) | DVD (9)
The result is an entertaining mess: lively and stylish, but frustratingly inconsequential.
The Runaways is cool, but the Runaways were just so much cooler.
Aside from following the clichéd (if real) storyline, The Runaways is plagued by something of a split personality, thanks to its two young stars.
Excess is abundant in photographer and music-video director Floria Sigismondi's energetic debut.
There's a flinty integrity in this movie's look at the rock grind, and Stewart and Fanning are intensely watchable.
While Jett and Currie emerge as blurry, half-formed characters, Shannon's Fowley brings the contradictions the Runaways embodied into sharp, biting focus.
Fanning makes Currie's fame- and pharmaceutical-fueled transformation/liberation at once exhilarating and terrifying.
... A typical story of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll, but it's told with style and energy that keep it from bogging down amid the clichés.
[It chooses] to merely nod at the more complicated, strange and exciting aspects of the band's story and spend most of its time touching on the usual stuff
In age-appropriate casting, Fanning doesn't put a platform boot wrong in her portrayal of a valley girl rock chick (circa. 1975) growing up way too fast, with neither the inclination nor the wherewithal to slow down.
The film might be intended as a cautionary tale, but that tends to get lost amid the lurid thrills and tacked-on happy ending.
Aside from Stewart transforming herself into Jett, once the band is formed, there is little about the film that captures the atmosphere of the time period.
Director Floria Sigismondi brings the tale of this real-life pop-punk band to the screen with the traits of a vapid, glossy promo video. And it works! A shame about the length then.
It's not so much a shock to the system as a series of practised strokes, yet -- for moments at a time -- it makes you squirm happily in your seat.
It's miles too long and doesn't know when to shut up, but The Runaways is too much fun to really do any damage to the world.
Sigismondi's dramatised account of the band has echoes of Almost Famous as it captures a tangy flavour of the hunger for fame and the bittersweet reality of success in the Seventies rock scene.
The Runaways se mora preporučiti, iako prije svega svima onima koji su prije toga bili prisiljeni gledati Sumrak, odnosno iz terapeutskih razloga.
For the most part it works, thanks to painstaking recreations of hazy disco-era dive bars, faded roller rinks and seedy motels, plus a ballsy performance by Kristen Stewart.
Given that the band were more about attitude than music, there's not a lot of substance here.
Fanning captures Currie's surly "Cherry Bomb" style effectively, particularly when dolled up in the notorious white basque that Currie is remembered for; Stewart is even better as the furiously smouldering Jett.
There's a wham, bam, thank you, man, quality to this music biopic that makes it a pleasurable rock rush that's easy on the eye, even if it fails to do much more than skate the surface of the band of its title.
Maybe The Runaways is Linson's way of showing that he can make a success of this subject, and I think he has done, with a film which shows how brutal and sexist rock'n'roll is.
Audience Reviews for The Runaways
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
-
- Joan Jett: I'M THE FUCKING WILD ONE!
-
- Cherie Currie: I think I just need a break... From the band.
- Joan Jett: If you haven't noticed, Cherie, we're in the middle of cutting a record.
- Cherie Currie: I just gotta spend time with my family, you know?
- Joan Jett: Who? Youre mom is in Indonesia? Your drunk dad? Are we not your fucked up family now?
- Cherie Currie: I can't do this anymore. I need my life back.
- Joan Jett: This is my life.
-
- Tammy: My brother said guys don't like tough girls. They want girls to be... soft.
- Joan Jett: Of course he'd say that, he's a pussy.
-
- Joan Jett: Good fucking job. No, really, good fucking job!
- Kim Fowley: Anarchy, mayhem!
- Joan Jett: [throws two bottles at window]
- Kim Fowley: Rock and roll, baby! Come on, Joanie.
- Joan Jett: Fuck you! Fuck you! [bangs on window]. Fuck you!
-
- Kim Fowley: I like your style. A little Bowie, a little Bardot, and a look on your face that says I could kick the shit out of a truck driver.
-
- Cherie Currie: Hey, Derek, did Marie tell you she's not wearing any underwear?
Discussion Forum
There are no discussion threads for The Runaways yet.
Latest News on The Runaways
September 16, 2010:
Five Favorite Films with Michael ShannonMichael Shannon has made an impressive mark on Hollywood in the past few years. The noted character...
September 2, 2010:
Marvel's Runaways Running in March 2011According to Production Weekly, Marvel's "Runaways" is set to begin filming next March -- although...
July 20, 2010:
RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: Losers and Runaways Are Coming HomeThis week on home video, there were a lot of straight-to-DVD releases. So many, in fact, that you'd...
What's Hot On RT
The Last Stand, Side Effects
Trailer for new Coen Bros movie
Fast & Furious cars gallery
Blockbusters ranked!
Featured on RT
- In Pictures: The Cars of Fast & Furious 0
- Digital Multiplex: Warm Bodies and Aftershock 5
- Discover the Best-Reviewed Films in Summer Movie Scorecard 2013 0
- RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: The Last Stand and Side Effects 16
- Box Office Guru Wrapup: Star Trek Softer Than Expected at #1 85
- Weekly Ketchup: Will Smith to Star in Wild Bunch Remake? 39
- Critics Consensus: Star Trek Into Darkness is Certified Fresh 107
Top Headlines
-
Which Film Franchise Has Been the Best for Female Characters?
2
-
Damon Lindelof Talks Tomorrowland
0
-
10 Movies About Really Fast Cars
1
-
Poltergeist Remake Synopsis Hints at Plot Differences
6
-
Kristen Wiig Says Welcome to Me
1
-
David Fincher's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Gets Bumped
0
-
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance Remake in the Works
0










Top Critic