"Her Smell" (2018 release; 135 min.) brings the story of Becky Something, a punk singer-songwriter and leader in an all-female trio called Something She (think Sleater-Kinney, the Donnas, etc.). As the movie opens, we get some archive home footage when the trio has made the cover of SPIN Magazine and the girls are celebrating their success. We then go to a gig, where the band is performing their last song, and then retreats backstage. Before we know it, it is chaos all around: Becky doesn't know how to handle her young daughter or her ex-husband, or her band mates for that matter. Instead she relies on her personal assistant/spiritual adviser... At this point we are 10 min. into the movie, but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.
Couple of comments: this is the latest from indie writer-director Alex Ross Perry. Here he examines the life of an eccentric, some might say self-centered and possibly deranged, female singer-songwriter. What makes this movie rather unique is that Perry picks 5 scenes, and lets those scenes unfold (with home footage separating the various scenes/chapters. The first scenes plays out in real time over a good half hour, all backstage following the conclusion of the gig. The second scene is for me the best one: Becky and her band mates are in the studio, desperately trying to come up with new material for the net album. Just watch it unfold! The movie benefits enormously from the commanding performance of Elizabeth Moss as Becky. I mean, without Moss there is no "Her Smell" (Moss also co-produced). There are several other noteworthy performances, including Eric Stoltz as the band's manager, and Gayle Rankin as the band's drummer. Incidentally, the original songs are written by Alicia Bognanno (from the great band Bully). Considering all of this was done on a shoestring budget (for Hollywood standards), it is all the more remarkable...
"Her Smell" premiered to good acclaim at last year's Toronto International Film Festival. There is a good reason why this film is currently rated 85% Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. The film opened this weekend at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati, and I couldn't wait to see it. The Sunday matinee screening where I saw this at was not attended well (4 people, including myself), although the picture perfect Spring weather may have been a factor too. Hopefully this movie can find a larger audience as it expands onto other platforms. I cannot understand the outright hostile reviews here from a number of reviewers. Did they watch the same movie as I did? I encourage you to check out "Her Smell", be it in the theater (if you still can), on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.
Couple of comments: this is the latest from indie writer-director Alex Ross Perry. Here he examines the life of an eccentric, some might say self-centered and possibly deranged, female singer-songwriter. What makes this movie rather unique is that Perry picks 5 scenes, and lets those scenes unfold (with home footage separating the various scenes/chapters. The first scenes plays out in real time over a good half hour, all backstage following the conclusion of the gig. The second scene is for me the best one: Becky and her band mates are in the studio, desperately trying to come up with new material for the net album. Just watch it unfold! The movie benefits enormously from the commanding performance of Elizabeth Moss as Becky. I mean, without Moss there is no "Her Smell" (Moss also co-produced). There are several other noteworthy performances, including Eric Stoltz as the band's manager, and Gayle Rankin as the band's drummer. Incidentally, the original songs are written by Alicia Bognanno (from the great band Bully). Considering all of this was done on a shoestring budget (for Hollywood standards), it is all the more remarkable...
"Her Smell" premiered to good acclaim at last year's Toronto International Film Festival. There is a good reason why this film is currently rated 85% Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. The film opened this weekend at my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati, and I couldn't wait to see it. The Sunday matinee screening where I saw this at was not attended well (4 people, including myself), although the picture perfect Spring weather may have been a factor too. Hopefully this movie can find a larger audience as it expands onto other platforms. I cannot understand the outright hostile reviews here from a number of reviewers. Did they watch the same movie as I did? I encourage you to check out "Her Smell", be it in the theater (if you still can), on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.