Good But Over-rated

Rating: 7/10 (1 October 2000)

Not a bad movie, but I'd hesitate to lump it into the pile of must-sees. Overblown movies like this (American Beauty was another one) make me reluctant to go see "critically acclaimed" movies while in the theater. To it's credit, I thought this movie rated higher than American Beauty, but what is up with John Cusack? He's done a row of artsy-fartsy (read "overblown" "over-inflated" or "over-rated") flicks lately like Grosse Pointe Blank, Being John Malkovich (another good but not the live-saving experience you'd expect from all the hype), Pushing Tin and the snooze-fest Cradle Will Rock. In other words, pause and send a point man in to see a John Cusack movie first. If he doesn't come out, call a coroner and go see another movie. Now I'm wondering if Almost Famous will be the exceptional movie critics claim it is, or just another puffed up , flavorless, rice crispy of a movie like High Fidelity.