Movie-A-Day #337: Tommy

[KingLouieLouie]

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First... I rank the Who w/in the top 5 of my personal favorite bands of all-time... There was no way possible that I would overlook selecting this film.. Probably the best movie to be adapted from a full-length album... Here again is Amazon.com:

If you've ever wanted to hear Jack Nicholson sing (or try to) or marvel at the sight of Ann-Margret drunkenly cavorting in a cascade of baked beans, Tommy is the movie you've been waiting for. As it turns out, the Who's brilliant rock opera is sublimely matched to director Ken Russell's penchant for cinematic excess, and this 1975 production finds Russell at the peak of his filmmaking audacity. It's a fever-dream of musical bombast, custom-fit to the thematic ambition of Pete Townshend's epic rock drama, revolving around the titular "deaf, dumb, and blind kid" (played by Who vocalist Roger Daltrey) who survives the childhood trauma that stole his senses to become a Pinball Wizard messiah in Townshend's grandiose attack on the hypocrisy of organized religion. The story is remarkably coherent considering the hypnotic dream-state induced by Russell's visuals. Tommy's odyssey is rendered through wall-to-wall music, each song representing a pivotal chapter in Tommy's chronology, from the bloodstream shock of "The Acid Queen" (performed to the hilt by Tina Turner) to Nicholson's turn as a well-intentioned physician, Elton John's towering rendition of "Pinball Wizard," and Daltrey's epiphanous rendition of "I'm Free." Other performers include Eric Clapton and (most outrageously) the Who's drummer Keith Moon, and through it all Russell is almost religiously faithful to Townshend's artistic vision. Although it divided critics when first released, Tommy now looks likes a minor classic of gonzo cinema, worthy of the musical genius that fueled its creation. --Jeff Shannon

Personal Note:


For years Pete Townshend and the rest of the Who's management wanted the epical rock opera "Tommy" to reach the big-screen.. It took 6-years for that objective/vision to finally become reality and the results will perfect...


Ann-Margret and Jack Nicholson were ideal for their roles...Seeing Elton John during the Pinball Wizard sequence was rather hysterical and of course Tina Turner as the Acid Queen was stunning in itself...


Obviously.. Roger Daltrey stole the film with his Oscar-worthy performance as Tommy..... It proved that he could have had a promising career as an actor... in fact.. he even considers himself as an actor in the role as the Whos lead singer since he's always trying to find the character to best suit Townshend's compositions.....

Tommy has so much symbolism that it is unreal...I just wish I saw this in threatre and would love if they re-issued it.. especially in IMAX form since it would add more to the over-all experience....


What is interesting is that the film was made when Keith Moon's life was beginning to fall apart, but he managed to capture the twisted Uncle Ernie in the the most twisted way imaginable...... Eric Clapton also delivered a decent performance in his albeit brief appearance....

Tommy is another one of those that I can never grow sick of... To me its a highly inspirational tale meant for all ages....

 

[Ryanwb]

Awesome, AWESOME soundtrack.

Ever since I was a young boy, I played the silver ball

 

[KloD]

My mother was a huge Who fan. When I was in the 3rd grade each student took a turn bringing in their favorite record each day and we would listen to it as a class for 30 min. or so during art time. I remember the day before my turn some kid had brought in a the Muppets or something and then on my day I brought in the soundtrack to Tommy. As soon as the fiddle about song came on the teacher hit stop and that was it.

 

[Bada0Bing]

If this is the movie that I’m thinking of, it made me sick to my stomach to watch. That was a long time ago, so maybe I’ll give it another go. I think I’m mixing this up with A Clockwork Orange. I need to watch both of these films and then get back and give my response.

 

[Ryanwb]

Tommy was on Showtime this morning. Ann Margret used to be a sexy beast

 

[BleedRed]

I'll have to check this one out.