Trussell1890

18 May 2012

Great thoughtful movie

Thinking that men have sincere regrets at mid life makes this movierock. Real interpretation of what happens to people. Life happens! Didnot think the whole theme would work for me, yet it really did. It wasa look at real life, with regrets and why we make the decisions we do.Going with the flow, as most youths do and the fun it brings depictsthis movie. Letting yourself listen to the music and see things happenin the movie just because things happen keeps you thinking. Now whatwould I have done. Do we go with what feels good or do we set goals.The memory of times past and our life today depends on our past. Ourpath can change if we let it. I never review movies but if you are ababy boomer you should she this. Then be grateful for who you aretoday. And realize you can change things if you want. Makes you think.Sometimes thinking is the problem and not the solution but in this caseit isn't.See this film if you are forty or older! Never mind everyoneshould see it. Cheers or maybe not after this one!

Elizabeth Weitzman

17 May 2012

Rare is the film that refuses to judge its flawed characters, or that grasps the ache of nostalgia while remaining clear-eyed in the face of reality.

Kurt Loder

02 May 2012

Ron Eldard gives a sweet, moving performance as a 40-ish guy suddenly un-tethered in time.

Chris_Pandolfi

02 May 2012

Can We Pretend He's a Manager?

Jimmy (Ron Eldard) has been a roadie for the Blue Oyster Cult for thepast twenty-six years. Now in his mid-forties, he has just been fired.Roadies can potentially make hundreds if not thousands of dollars aweek, but he either wasn't very good at his job or he spent his moneyrecklessly. Whatever the case, he's left penniless and with no place tostay. He will repeatedly try to contact an unseen man named Bobby overhis cell phone, angrily demanding he be given another chance. In themeantime, he will return to his old neighborhood in Queens, where hewill reunite with his ailing mother (Lois Smith). He will lie and tellher that he manages the BOC, that he has written several of theirsongs, and that in a week's time he'll be with them on their SouthAmerican tour. He will also discover that his mother has kept his oldroom exactly as he left it as a teenager, the walls adorned withposters of rock idols, the shelves stocked with classic LP albums."Roadie" is a sad, reflective portrait of a desperate man clinging tohis own delusions. It's not enough that he has spent much of his adultlife as a roadie; he must pass himself off as someone he never was inthe naïve belief that it will make him look more important. All he'sdoing is feeding into his own broken dreams of rock 'n' roll stardom,and in the process keeping himself hopelessly stuck in the past. Andyet it's obvious that time has long since caught up with him. He's nota kid anymore; he can't hop around from city to city and country tocountry with the same stamina he once had. He has put on some weight,and while others will freely speculate on the number of women he hasslept with on the road, it's highly unlikely he has taken part inanything like that.Apart from his mother, Jimmy also reunites with his ex-girlfriend,Nikki (Jill Hennessy), who gets by singing in a local lounge. She'smarried to Jimmy's former nemesis, Randy (Bobby Cannavale), who evennow insists on referring to Jimmy as Testicles, an intentionalmispronunciation of his last name. In many ways, Nikki and Randy arejust as stuck in the past as Jimmy is. They will, for example, arrangeto relive their high school days with Jimmy by checking into a motelroom and indulging in booze, cocaine, and rock music. But it runsdeeper than that. As a teenager, Randy was essentially a bully; he nowchannels his hostility into subtler forms of obnoxious behavior, likemaking contrarian statements about the BOC. The cruel irony is that themeanest person in Jimmy's life is the only one to see right throughhim.As for Nikki, she puts up a good front, but it's obvious that within isa person who longs for more than a weekly gig in a barroom lounge. Herlove for Randy is perhaps more complicated than it need be; while shedoesn't appreciate his latent immaturity, and while she certainlydoesn't approve of his mistreatment of Jimmy, she will always makeexcuses for his behavior. Does she truly see past his character flaws,or is she desperately trying to put a positive spin on the man shesettled for? I'm not really sure. What I do know is that her feelingsfor Jimmy are evident, even as early as their very first scenetogether. Those old feelings haven't subsided. She will occasionallysuggest to Jimmy that he introduce her to people in the music industry,or at the very least pass along her demo CD. Knowing what we know aboutJimmy, you can't help but feel sorry for her in those moments.For a subplot that comprises the bulk of the movie, it's a shame it hadto be the most contrived and routine. Of course Jimmy would run intohis old flame upon returning home. Of course she has gotten married tohis enemy, who's little more than a one-note caricature. Of courseJimmy would stir within his old flame a long-dormant desire to besomething greater. Having said this, it's handled about as well as canbe expected. I certainly don't mind the fact that it features thesingle best line of the film, and the reason I say it's the best isbecause it's simultaneously hilarious and depressingly telling. It hasbeen reserved for Eldard; as Jimmy and Nikki listen to a record in hisold room, he looks at her and says with a straight face, "I don't focuson the past, Nikki. That's a waste of time."The subplot involving Jimmy and his mother is far more compelling,although I must admit, I had a hard time reading the latter character.Her mind drifts very easily. In one fell swoop, she will tell Jimmy hownice it is to have him home, lament about the life he never shared withher, express disappointment that he hasn't made more of himself,encourage him to get reacquainted with the neighbors, and offer to makehim lunch before becoming distracted by her backyard garden, which shespends a lot of time in. Are the filmmakers hinting at somethingserious, such as the early stages of Alzheimer's or dementia? It'spossible, although I can't say for sure. Regardless, I found therelationship between mother and son fascinating. Their scenes add anextra dimension to "Roadie," one that prevents it from becoming tooconventional.-- Chris Pandolfi (www.atatheaternearyou.net)

rayok

27 April 2012

Didn't Catch Fire

OK the good news is as there are only 12 reviews on this film so thereis a chance someone will actually read mine, woohoo. The bad news isI'm not sure many people will watch the film, especially to the end andbe bothered to come here. For a start I doubt if anyone under the age of 30 could understand thesituation the lead finds himself in, let alone sympathise with him. Fora second not a lot happens. The film seems like a play, scenes in the house and the bar with 2 or 3people talking take up a large part of the footage, feelings andemotions are aired but there is no moving on or culmination, let aloneredemption. The movie only steps up a gear in the motel but then you are leftfrustrated and more disheartened with the characters. The film has adownbeat, melancholic feel and lacks complexity, there are nosurprises. The characters enter the film with nothing and leave withless. I watched it for the culture links and the expectation of the big manreturns to small town play out but it never really happened. Fineacting, interesting concept but failed to catch fire.

Ron Wilkinson

26 April 2012

A special treat for Queens New Yorkers, this no holds barred drama will reflect with less intensity the farther it travels.

specvman2003

18 April 2012

Good movie, but not great

Could this movie have been better??? Probably; but as it stands themovie is still very good. Don't know that I would rate it an 8, but itwas a very solid 7 and borderline 8 or a very high 7. The acting wasgood and all the characters play their roles perfectly. There are somescenes that seem a tad out of place and a scene or two that areinserted for no apparent reason other than to come up with a reason totry and tie in the end of the movie (you'll understand when you watchit) hence my 7 rating. The soundtrack is great at times and debatableduring others. Its not a "must see" movie but it is definitely one tocheck out if your in the mood for a good flick.

Todd Jorgenson

17 April 2012

Provides a touching look at a man whose life is in a period of transition.

Eric D. Snider

10 April 2012

Assembles the usual ingredients into an average, innocuous film, something that isn't good enough to recommend or bad enough to avoid.

Bruce Lee

09 April 2012

Good Acting, Good music if you Like Blue Oyster Cult, very weak and boring story, if you like action movies this isn't for you.

There are a zillion reviewers out there who tell you almost any and alldetails about the movie; so I try not to do that. Also I try not togive out to much information or spoilers because that will kill theenjoyment of the movie for you. Basically I try to sum up the movie ina simple way and give you an idea if you would like it or not. I gavethe movie 5/10 because it wasn't terrible, but it wasn't good either.The main character in this movie was really good, and the acting ingeneral was pretty good, but to me the story wasn't all thatinteresting. You can have the best actors in the world but if the storyisn't that compelling it usually isn't a good movie to watch. The jokeabout the T.V. show Seinfeld being a "show about nothing" is funny, butit's not really true. I love Seinfeld and the writing in that show wasjust simply amazing, even though every episode is about the everydaylives of the crazy characters, you are almost always engrossed in theshow and wondering what is going to happen next, or what zany characterwill be developed, such as the Soup Nazi, The bubble boy, etc. etc.(way to many to name here, but you get the point). This movie may makesome people reflect on their lives, and how can they make them betteretc. but the basic story is really, really, boring. If you like BlueOyster Cult, or slow movies with good acting that this is probablyworth 2 bucks at a Red Box. I saw the movie for free so I can'tcomplain. Is it a must see movie, absolutely not, but if you are boredand have nothing to do, this movie is better than sitting around andwatching paint dry.

Alonso Duralde

31 March 2012

Roadie has the stench of freshman-year mandatory creative writing all over it, from its cribs of Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller to an ending that's embarrassingly, clangingly metaphorical.

Chris Barsanti

31 March 2012

...a one-note comedy whose darker undertones are never fully explored.

Doris Toumarkine

28 March 2012

Terrific contemporary drama about a veteran Queens, New York roadie who's been sacked after decades hauling equipment for Blue Oyster Cult is a gripping portrait of a flawed loser that allows Ron Eldard to shine

Nick Schager

28 March 2012

Roadie takes its characters' suffering seriously without ever properly justifying said misery as enlightening or unique.

petesea

24 March 2012

Real People Who Love Music With Some Very Real Problems

Jimmy was a roadie for Blue Oyster Cult all his adult life who has -painfully and wrongfully according to him - been fired by the band andleft by them somewhere in the wilds of Michigan. With nowhere else togo, he makes his way back home to Queens where he has not been sincehis father's death many, many years before. He has barely spoken withhis mother in the interim and now he overstates his role with the bandto her - manager, writer, producer, etc. He tries to collect himself todeal with this massive setback, but he is not making the situation anybetter with angry calls to the band's actual manager.I think that roadie is one of the coolest jobs in the world next torock star and Jimmy does as well. I, too, would have major problemsdealing with his rude awakening after so many years and the loss of hislivelihood and dream.Out for some butter for his Mom's famous tuna melts, Jimmy runs into ahigh school classmate who is and was quite a butt-head who is nowmarried to Jimmy's first love, Nikki. Jimmy and Nikki wind up back inhis boyhood room which is untouched by time and looks like a "rock androll museum" according to Nikki.Out of his vinyl record collection, Nikki pulls out Ratcity In Blue by,local 70s favorites, the Good Rats and they listen to a couple oftracks. This brings back memories of seeing the band every Saturdaynight with their friend Steph - who passed away unbeknownst to Jimmy.This movie is about real people, with lots of issues, who love musicand are dealing with some very real problems. If you enjoy music, havebeen on the road with a band or thought about doing so (one of mylife's regrets is turning down an offer to be a roadie) you will reallylike this movie.Full disclosure - I also own this "original" album with the cool pizzasleeve art, am a huge Good Rats fan and may have seen Steph, Nikki andJimmy at one of those Saturday night shows back in the day. Myheartfelt thanks go to Gerald and Michael Cuesta for a wonderful filmand soundtrack including these New York music legends and a greatversion of Jackson Browne's Stay by Adam Duritz of the Counting Crows.Did they misspell "Peppi" Marchello in the closing thanks to him?

My_Opinion-245-920801

23 March 2012

The Roadie is engaging, well written, directed and acted out. Along with a sound track that will not disappoint.

I must confess up to the point of actually watching the Roadie, I hadno idea what a roadie was or did. This is not my usual type of movie,however we should strive to challenge and expose ourselves to differentmovies. Just as you would a different language or cultural in order togrow and mature as an all around individual. The movie was interestingand I thought the plot, made a point in trying to relate to the viewerthe regret of decisions that we make as youth, that do not pan out orother wise never manifest themselves. The characters were very likableand came across genuine and authentic in the Roadie, which must bestressed is a very necessary thing in a film like this. There was afeel that that the movies' main character could have been anyone of us:in regards to decision or choices that were made in our lives thatnever quite pan out. Perhaps you could take it a bit further and saythat everyone in there life at least once or twice has not let go of anidea or notion until: well it was to late. Atlas, I would be remiss, ifI did not mention that the sound track for the Roadie is excellent.

Michael_Elliott

17 March 2012

Some Strong Moments but the Story Isn't All Together

Roadie (2011) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Decent character story of a man named Jimmy (Ron Eldard) who returnshome to his mother (Lois Smith) after being fired as a roadie for BlueOyster Cult. Even though Jimmy's only back home for one, day he strikesup a relationship with an old girlfriend (Jill Hennessy) and herhusband (Bobby Cannavale) who used to pick on him back in high school.The story of a fired roadie should have made for a great movie andwhile there are hints of a strong story here the end result is prettydisappointing even with the great music and lead performance. The firstthirty-minutes of this movie almost kills it before it can take off andI'm sure many people are going to reach this point and start to grabfor the remote to turn it off but they should certainly stick with itbecause the film does get better during the final hour. These firstthirty-minutes are rather shallow because we just see Jimmy on thephone leaving messages or cussing in front of a window with kidswatching him. Once he gets home we start to see his relationship withhim mother and I found this to be rather dull as well. The film finallykicks into high gear when Jimmy meets up with his ex and her husband. Ithought some interesting ideas started to come out here including thelies that Jimmy is trying to give off about his life. At this point inthe film you actually start to care about the guy and what's going tohappen to him next. There are some very good moments between he and thehusband but of course there's a downfall towards the end of film andit's quite powerful. Eldard certainly looks the part of a roadie and Ithought he really did a fine job bringing this character to life evenwhen the screenplay wasn't giving him much to work with. He certainlyadds a lot of depth to the role. Both Hennessy and Cannavale are verygood in their parts as is Smith, although I'd say the screenplay reallydoesn't spell her character out all that well. ROADIE contains somegood rock tunes but there's no question that the screenplay needed are-write. As it is, the film will appeal to fans of rock but it'sdoubtful to find a large audience.

Andrew O'Hehir

16 March 2012

I simultaneously want to endorse its ambition and nerve and report that it's a very mixed bag.

Matthew Stechel

09 March 2012

Ron Eldard makes it worth the watch.

Roadie is a pretty good movie that's only about so-so while you'rewatching it, however the movie really resonated with me in the daysafter watching it. I appreciated the effort to make Ron Eldard'scharacter more then just a one dimensional lump of regret...i also likehis constant flip flopping between "what have i got to be regretful of?i did what i wanted to!" and "i've totally wasted my life" throughout,as i think that's exactly what a guy in his situation in real lifewould think upon coming home after twenty five years on the road onlyto realize he's right back where he was when he first left. While theinteractions between Ron Eldard and the rest of the cast kind of goback and fourth on the believable scale (Bobby Cannavale and JillHennessey are merely so-so as respectively a guy who used to taunt himin high school and his wife who was a long ago crush for Ron Eldard'scharacter..it probably doesn't help that neither of these charactersare likable in the least.) Its Ron Eldard himself who keeps this moviegoing forward...there are a lot of little moments throughout where hisreaction to what's going on in front of him is perfect. Eldard reallycaptures both the self-centeredness and the basic good heartedness ofthis guy...and while the director and the writer deserve all the creditfor keeping this character from veering too far into eitherdirection--it really falls to Eldard to keep him from appearing to beboth a selfish jerk and a mopey sad sack punching bag for the rest ofthe clearly unhappy people in the film to abuse. It really is a goodperformance that makes the whole film really seem a lot better then itprob would be with somebody else in the lead. Again as a whole the filmis only all right--but as a character study of this guy trying tofigure out the rest of his life while burdened with guilt about how heled the majority of his life so far--it was quite well done. Also as someone who lives here--i did love the full on locationshooting that's happening here, while i could do without JillHennesey's condescending attitude towards "never leaving queens" i didlove seeing certain locations on screen--enough to wanna shout "that'snear my house" to anyone who was in the theater with me (of courseseeing as how there were only about two other people there--i wiselydid not.)

bdgill12

09 March 2012

Fantastic Lead Performance, Bland Overall Product

After 20 years of lugging gear and setting up equipment for the BlueOyster Cult, Jimmy (Ron Eldard) is unceremoniously fired and abandonedby the band members he considered to be friends. With no identityoutside of his status as a roadie and no life plans, Jimmy ends upheading back home for the first time in a decade. After crashing in hisold bedroom, Jimmy comes into contact with Randy (Bobby Cannavale), hishigh-school nemesis who happens to be married to Nikki (JillHennessey), an old flame he never really got over. With nothing to showfor his time away from home, Jimmy begins making up stories andeventually draws Randy's ire, creating an uncomfortable situation thatfurther messes with Jimmy's already fragile mental state.Roadie is like a conflict between two mountain goats (I know that"bighorn sheep" would be a more scientifically correct title but"mountain goat" just sounds better): one goat represents the acting inthis film, chiefly that of Eldard, and the other represents thestoryline and general exposition of said storyline. The Acting Goat isan outstanding specimen. Eldard is one of my very favorite characteractors, a guy who always draws my attention no matter how big or smallhis role in a given movie may be. (This makes him a member of the"Barry Pepper All-Stars", a list of actors I really need to write apiece about one of these days.) This is a rare leading role for Eldardand he shines brilliantly. Jimmy is easy to root for despite not reallyshowing many qualities that usually make one likable and that is due toEldard's ability to convey a measure of truthfulness, or perhapsrelevance, to his character. The lack of purpose and the search formeaning in his life work make Jimmy an appealing protagonist in thissort of slow- paced, character-driven drama. There is also an edge ofgenuine desperation to Jimmy and through this trait Eldard gives realweight to a character which otherwise might have been pointless. Thesupporting players around Eldard are all solid as well, though nonequite measure up to the work of the leading man.The Story Goat, however, is an equally impressive beast but one thatworks for evil instead of good. Simply put, the events of Roadie areabout as bland as you can get. It isn't what I would call "boring"necessarily and yet nothing much happens. Jimmy comes into town, Jimmypals around with some old friends, and then Jimmy threatens to leavetown once more. That's about it. The settings that Roadie inhabits areuninteresting and the dialogue within is unimpressive. As a result, thestory undermines Eldard's work and leaves him virtually trapped in adull and somewhat meaningless world that serves as a stark contrast tothe appealing lead character. In the end, neither the Acting Goat northe Story Goat really win; instead, the two tire out and settle in fora nice nap, a genuine shame considering all that this film had goingfor it. Check out my reviews at ieatfilms.com and thesoapboxoffice.blogspot.com