NBR Movie of the Month--June 2006
So I have the honor of announcing the first NBR Movie of the Month, and I really couldn't wait until tomorrow to post it, so...
The NBR Movie of the Month for June 2006 is: Hysteria: The Def Leppard Story! I had the pleasure of stumbling upon this brilliant piece of cinematic excellence during a study break one evening a few weeks ago. I caught it right at the beginning and was riveted by what looked like a vintage 1980's A-Team car chase featuring a coked-up teenage boy driver with long, curly hair and a model in the passenger's seat of his Corvette. But wait, you ask, why was I riveted by a typical car chase scene? Well, simple--this car chase scene was on VH1.
When you watch Hysteria, you'll see a fascinating recreation of Def Leppard's turbulent rise, fall, and triumph. What really drew me in at first (beside the car chase) was how the producers were able to make the film look like a cheesy 80's movie (just like Def Leppard in real life!). In fact, during one the commercials, I had to log onto IMDB to find out more about the movie. Needless to say, I was shocked to learn that it was produced in 2001.
But the super-cool cheese didn't stop with the quality of production. Nope, what clinched the deal for me was how the writers seemed to go out of their way to make each Def Leppard band member into a bigger Rock Stereotype than he is/was in real life (or maybe they're really that way, I dunno). You have the good looking lead singer with the irrepressible work ethic. You have the live fast-die young drummer who beats the odds by surviving a brutal car crash (which they show twice--once at the beginning, and once in the middle!) with only one arm, only to come back and remain one of the fiercest drummers in rock. You have the drunken guitarist who gets kicked out. You have the other drunken guitarist who battles constant self doubt, only to tragically succumb to his demons. You have the New Guy guitarist who never feels like he fits in. There may have been a bass player in the band, but I can't remember him for the life of me. Maybe the producers were trying to make a point about bass players by making his big Rock Stereotype be "the remarkably forgettable bass player." (Actually, I vaguely recall that the bass player's name was Katie, which was kind of weird. I might be wrong, though.)
The film gets extra bonus points for having Anthony Michael Hall do a superb job playing Def Leppard's honorary sixth member and producer, Shania Twain's Husband. The entire cast also gets props for doing a great job lip-synching to the original (I think) Def Leppard hits.
All in all, Hysteria: The Def Leppard Story is a great way to spend 90 minutes of your life. That means a lot, coming from someone who generally hates movies and could only name one Def Leppard song before watching the film. The fact that this masterpiece only got a rating of 5.5 out of 10 on imdb.com (plus the headline "Acceptable Rock Documentary") shows how elitist and out of touch movie fans are.
Congratulations Hysteria: The Def Leppard Story! You're the first NBR Movie of the Month!
