Rent the DVD, invite your friends and have a slumber party

Rating: 10/10 (25 November 2013)

What does one say about a movie that's really good but could have been a great?
First off. Why was it really good? Well because The Runaways were the first all female rock band that wrote their material and played their instruments. The fact they were charismatic eye candy was a bonus for us males - so God bless'em for that. That makes this an important movie.
This type of genre tends to fall flat on its face, especially for musicians, when an actor is cast that can't play their respective instrument or mime the vocals. So when Joan Jett (played by the very gifted Kristen Stewart)is playing the guitar and singing, it appears authentic. Didn't hurt that Kristen resembles Joan Jett either.
Dakota Fanning is another gifted actress. Only difference is she exudes a wholesomeness that should have banned her from playing the role of Cherie Currie. But she handled it like a true pro. Folks. we're talking," Sex, Drugs, Booze and Rock N Roll." Plus, she sings amazingly well on these tracks.
Casting Elvis Presley's granddaughter as Cherie's twin sister Marie was a great choice. The role was small but gave her the opportunity to mix-it-up with the pros and shine.
Now.How could it have been made great? Well,simple; more emphasis on the other band members, especially Joan Jett. The story line leaned too heavily on Cherie's family life leaving me wanting to know more about the other group members family life. I still don't know diddly-squat about Lita Ford's life. We actually get to see Sandy West's Mom's horrified reaction after Kim Fowley comes to their home. And as for Joan's family life? Well forget about it. Not a peep.And I don't recall the bass player, Robin, played by Alia Shawkat from the sitcom Arrested Development having any dialogue! We see they played in Japan. But did they play at CBGB's ? It desperately needed that kind of balance.
It would also have been nice to show a photo of the real-life Runaways in 1976 that morphs into how they look today, just before the ending credits. Cliché? absolutely. Relevant? Very much so.
As a final note, the commentary is not to be missed. It has Joan Jett, Kristen and Dakota dishing out morsels of interesting background info. It too is rated R because of Kristen's penchant for whimsical profanity.