What Do The Critics Say?

"People always remember the singer, we are told, and in The Runaways, we remember Dakota Fanning's sensational performance as the blonde singing bombshell Cherie Currie: the face of the all-girl rock band, who is a little bit Bowie and a little bit Bardot. Fanning nails the essence of the vulnerable daughter of an alcoholic, whose look is precisely what appeals to opinionated, flamboyant music impresario Kim Fowley." Louise Keller URBAN CINEFILE "Isn't bad: it's got spirit and spunk; but it fails to really punch across this vital period in rock history." Matt Brunson CREATIVE LOAFING "Get ready to see Dakota Fanning in ways you never imagined, never wanted to see, can't believe with your own eyes and make you feel very very dirty." Willie Waffle WAFFLE MOVIES "They were Lolitas with a backbeat, jail bait in jumpsuits, without much in common other than a lack of experience and maturity and a longing for thrills." Nell Minow BELIEFNET "All eyes, and ears, will be on Stewart: can the Twilight star cut it as Joan Jett? It’s Fanning, however, who wins the platinum disc for her portrayal of Cherie Currie. From her mimed performance of his Lady Grinning Soul to her revealing Bardot-meets-Ziggy outfits, she embodies the sex, drugs and rock’n’roll lifestyle with aplomb A hugely enjoyable trash fest. The perfect way for Runaways virgins to pop their Cherry Bomb." David Michael Brown EMPIRE MAGAZINE

"This is a film by girls, for girls, and about girls. It's a bold stand, but one that works perfectly considering the film's subject matter. From the actresses gamely doing their own singing, to the grubby, fumbling sex scenes, The Runaways breathlessly seethes with hard fought authenticity." Erin Free FILMINK "The problem is that it purports to tell the story of a manufactured 70's all girl band and, when it's over, the character you remember most vividly is the guy who did the manufacturing." Rick Kisonak FILM THREAT "Stewart shows off a tougher persona than we usually see from her, proving she is far more than just a pout. Ultimately though the standout in the film is Fanning, who seems to be successfully transitioning from child to adult actor." Beth Wilson TRESPASS "A dim, gutless approximation of the feisty group and their brief bath in the frigid ice waters of fringe celebrity. It's all warped surface, blunted character estimation, and woeful direction." Brian Orndorf BRIANORNDORF.COM "Dakota Fanning is growing up and maturing into a fine actress, capable of delivering a character like Cherie who makes the swing from naïve suburban 15 year old to worldly wise and corroded 17 year old with conviction. It's her story and she makes a compelling case study. Kirsten Stewart is also effective as the rocking Joan Jett who drives the band's heart and soul; on remote control from Fowley, a thoroughly flamboyant performance by Shannon." Andrew L Urban URBAN CINEFILE

The Inside Story Summer 2009, Kristen Stewart transforms into a fiery red leather jumpsuit-wearing, guitarstrumming powerhouse. Immediately to her right, Dakota Fanning is now a glam rock star, wearing a tight corset and fishnets. The crowd goes wild as the band rips into the thunderous "Cherry Bomb", The Runaways biggest hit. The hyper-realistic moment is something far more than actors filming a scene: Fanning is really singing and Stewart is really playing as tears begin to fill the eyes of the real Cherie Currie and Joan Jett, who are watching their lives play out thirty years later. The fans are pretending to cheer for The Runaways but are sincerely star-struck at the site of Fanning and Stewart. Raw truth and authenticity prevail as Floria Sigismondi directs the camera to capture the moment at every conceivable angle. For the characters it is the apex of their journey. For the young actors, it is near the end of an intense month-long shoot, where they have been challenged by the grittiest, and perhaps deepest, roles of their careers. Sigismondi wasn’t interested in making a biopic or celebrating the past. She saw "The Runaways" as a way to tell a story of empowerment where young girls come into their own and set out to make a place for themselves. "It is a coming of age story of young women kind of getting in too far deep into, and kind of surviving, their time together," Sigismondi said. "They just get too far, lost in their circumstance. But it is not a documentary. I have taken liberties with trying to depict the truth through the events, and finding a story beyond what we know." This story was four years in the making, beginning with producer John Linson ("Lords of Dogtown") who licensed the rights to Currie’s book and set out to get this movie made. Growing up around the entertainment business and the music industry (his father is renowned producer Art Linson: "Fast Times at Ridgemont High", "The Untouchables", "Heat" and also a producer on "The Runaways"), John Linson was particularly versed on the toll fame can take, especially on youth. He was at a party talking music and the name Cherie Currie came up. Cherie was someone Linson admits to "having a bit of a crush on" when he was a young kid reading the wild tales of The Runaways in Creem magazine. As the others conversed about the impact of The Runaways on music, Linson was struck with the idea of "making a movie about two young girls who go up against Hollywood." To do The Runaways justice, Linson knew this wasn’t going to be some PG sugarcoated version of the band that quells the racier parts of the story. "It wasn't as much to do a music film as much as a teenage girl powered drama that tells the truth of what life can be and not be in LA," Linson continued. To make the movie they wanted to make, the Linsons needed the right backing from a production company that was unafraid to produce films that fly in the face of studio formulas and convention. They didn’t have to look far to find River Road Entertainment, given Art Linson had just produced Sean Penn’s acclaimed adaptation of Jon Krakauer’s Into the Wild, based on the life Christopher McCandless and his extraordinary journey into the American West. For a company that has made a number of 'true stories', River Road is not interested in simply recreating the past. The company aims to produce films that stand the test of time in the sense that they are more about the characters progression and the broader meaning of their lives as much as the individual beats along the way. The Linsons and River Road founder Bill Pohlad were in sync on the angle of "The Runaways" story. "It is about girls, and the ability even at that young age to try to find yourself," Pohlad says. While it wasn't essential, finding a female director was important to the producing team, given the coming of age nature of the piece. After talking to a number of different prospects, for more than a year and a half, they found Floria Sigismondi. "We certainly knew of Floria and her music video work," Pohlad offered. "We were all very drawn to her, and it's turned out incredibly well. She dove into the material, and certainly had a strong connection to it. She’s very confident with a very strong vision, and is somebody with great visual sense and a great eye." To prepare to write the screenplay, Sigismondi ("Postmortem Bliss") conducted numerous interviews with band members and people close to the scene. She also researched band profiles from the era and pulled from Currie’s book. With all this material, Sigismondi was able to imagine teenagers wrestling with all that comes with a red-hot spotlight. "To get their voices I did a lot of historical research. And then I drew from my own past and thought of how I would have felt in a similar situation. And it went from there." At their core, The Runaways were a band about liberation: liberation from stereotypes, liberation from the banality suburban life, and liberation from the corporate rock and disco sounds that dominated radio. Of course the rock scene of the 1970s was certainly not without its lurid tales of excess and illicit drug use and The Runaways did not escape it, which Sigismondi felt made their band’s success all the more moving. "It wasn't, you know, like these are the accomplishments," Sigismondi said. "I think the accomplishments come through the pain. Cherie is triumphant to me because she makes a choice. And Joan's triumphant because she makes another choice. But to me they are both heroes because they are both following their heart. But in all that, it was hard to get to that place. So for me it wasn't just about the highs, it was about everything, including the lows." For Sigismondi, there weren’t many young women who could play Joan Jett and truly embody her character from the voice, to the personality, to the body language like Kristen. Stewart was at the right age and point in her life to identify with Joan and make the deep connection to her character. "I think Kristen became her. Her essence was so true; it was really an amazing transformation to behold." It’s rare for actors to have such immediate access to the person they are portraying. During production, Stewart and Fanning were often seen off to the side on sets, in the trailers, even outside of production working closely with Currie and Jett to hone every detail of the rock and roll personas. To carefully craft her performance to be an accurate reflection of Joan, Stewart spent a great deal of time with Jett throughout production of the film. "Joan’s our executive producer; she was there every day spending time with me," Stewart revealled. "To prepare for a role like this, you can research, read interviews, watch old footage, but to my benefit, there wasn’t a whole lot of that available. I was able to talk directly with Joan and think I would have felt like a fraud had I not." As Dakota took the stage for her pivotal "Cherry Bomb" scene, waiting in the wings was her biggest supporter and fan. "To me, Dakota is just one of the greatest actresses ever," says Cherie Currie. "She was so engaging and eager to make sure she was on point with her singing and her performance. She’s phenomenal." Being the same age as Cherie in the film helped. Since Dakota felt like Cherie’s contemporary this gave her the ability to identify in greater depth with her character. "I was very lucky to have Cherie help me understand the character. I was able to ask her questions that led to stories about my character." The film reminds us that The Runaways arrived during an extremely crucial moment in time for women in music and the film eloquently captures the music scene in Los Angeles in the early to mid 1970s. "Everyone wants to believe that the extraordinary can happen to them," says Currie. "It doesn’t mean you’re not gonna have to work hard for it, because, trust me, a lot of people never thought we could do what we did. We went through hell making it easier for girls in music. We were the soldiers out there getting bloody and beat up. But here we are. And we’re doing okay." 2008 Satellite Award winning actor Michael Shannon ("Revolutionary Road") wasn’t sure his schedule would allow him to take on the role of Kim Fowley. When he began to research the part, he came across an interview Fowley had done on "The Tomorrow Show with Tom Snyder" back in the 1970s. "He comes out on the screen, he's in this orange suit, his hair's all slicked back and he's got make up on, fingernail polish like a praying mantis. He was just one of the most fascinating people I had ever seen, and you couldn't take your eyes off him." That Tom Snyder clip sold him on the project. Shannon felt like it would be a huge challenge to try and capture Fowley’s personality and his way of being. Fowley rants on and on like a foul-mouthed modern beat poet, and as Sigismondi notes: "if that dialogue is not said right, it could just feel long and awkward." When the director heard Shannon deliver his first monologue in rehearsal, she saw it as a revelation. There were times during filming where Shannon was required to deliver crude lines which made him a little uncomfortable as the lines were directed towards the young actresses. "There was one line that had me extremely nervous and of course when I went to deliver the line, I got it all mixed up," Shannon (who plays Doc Cross Williams in "Jonah Hex") recalls. "We had some funny screw-ups from time to time.” Shannon was thankful that Fanning and Stewart were both such professionals given the dark nature of some of the material. "They’re both such professionals. They’re both gracious, kind, and supportive." Together Sigismondi and Oscar winning production designer Eugenio Caballero ("Pan's Labyrinth"), meticulously planned, outlined, rehearsed and lit every scene with the sole purpose of framing tension. Where they could, Sigismondi and Caballero chose to augment the lighting with more practical lamps from the period. The lamps in photographs were used in every single corner of the set to create a feeling of intimacy. "There's a filter that makes it perfect," Caballero explained. "That enhances the feelings, with the color scheme." Caballero used saturated colors to reflect the 1970s but as they lost their innocence used more washed, bleached out colors. Caballero designed the scenes according to attitude. "It was a very punk rock attitude," he said. Music Supervisor George Drakoulias ("Tropic Thunder" & "The Hangover") recalls a pivotal moment during the rehearsals, when he was playing tapes for Joan Jett. "George, why are you playing my songs back to me, I thought we were supposed to listen to Kristen?" Jett asked. "No it is Kristen singing," said Drakoulias. "Really?" said Jett in disbelief. "Joan, I promise you, it’s Kristen singing," Drakoulias replied. Joan replied: "Oh that’s pretty cool." It was then when Drakoulias knew Kristen was the only person for the part. "If Kristen could fool Joan’s ears, I knew we’d be okay." Stepping into a recording studio was a totally new experience for three time Young Artist Award winner Fanning. Recording the tracks made the fifteen year old feel like she was living her dream of being "a rock and roll super star." What's It All About?

Los Angeles 1975, two fifteen year old teenage valley girls with punk in their blood, meet in a scungy trailer during an audition for lead singer of an all girl band. The two teens, Joan Jett and Cherie Currie, will become the heart and soul of "The Runaways", a group of extraordinary young women who rise from rebellious Southern California kids to rock stars of what will become, the legendary band that paved the way for future generations of girl musicians. Under the Svengali-like influence of rock impresario Kim Fowley, the group evolves into an outrageous success and a family of misfits. With its tough-chick image and raw talent, the band quickly earns a name for itself: and so do its two leads. Joan is the band’s pure rock 'n' roll heart, while Cherie, with her Bowie-Bardot looks, is the sex kitten. A wild life on the road, fueled by sex, drugs and booze would lead to the bands demise.

The Verdict "If you're thinking of taking in "The Runaways" because it's supposedly headlined by Twilight Saga Cast member Kristen Stewart: well, don't! Because unfortunately, this is just another lack lustre, uninspiring performance and one that is in the mould of every character we've seen her portray in recent times. Think dour, dark, Bella; only with a guitar in her hands and you'll get my drift. Fans will remember Joan Jett and her bands for hits such as "I Love Rock 'n' Roll", Little Liar, "Do You Wanna Touch", "Neon Angels", "School Days" and "Cherry Bomb" and while Stewart looks like and mimmics Jett well, it's not a hard ask for her, but Dakota Fanning is another story. She steals the show along with Michael Shannon who plays the bands sleazy manager, Kim Fowley. Fannings "Cherry Bomb" is every bit as good as Jett's version. The story of "The Runaways" is not a pretty one, but it is intriguing, fascinating and very insightful. What they achieved, paved the way for other inspired young women to become a part of musics rich history. And, if you want a real treat, grab the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack CD, "The Runaways", from your local music store, which has been released on the Warner Music label. There's no doubting fans of Jett, Stewart and Fanning will love it. 3 1/2 STARS." The Production Team

Director Screenplay Adapted from Producers Cinematography Film Editor Casting Production Design Set Decoration Costume Design

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Floria Sigismondi Floria Sigismondi the Cherie Currie book: "Neon Angel: The Cherie Currie Story" Art Linson/John Linson/Bill Pohlad Benoît Debie Richard Chew Wendy O'Brien Eugenio Caballero Fontaine Beauchamp Hebb Carol Beadle

Who Is Playing Who?

Kristen Stewart Dakota Fanning Michael Shannon Stella Maeve Scout Taylor-Compton Alia Shawkat Riley Keough Johnny Lewis Tatum O'Neal Brett Cullen Hannah Marks Jill Andre Peggy Stewart Lisa Long

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Joan Jett Cherie Currie Kim Fowley Sandy West Lita Ford Robin Marie Currie Scottie Cherie's Mom Cherie's Dad Tammy Aunt Evie Grandma Oni Sandy's Mom

Run Time 106 minutes Rated MA15+ [AUST] Copyright ©2010 - River Road Entertainment - All Rights Reserved ©1999-2010 The Movie Pages & impact Internet Services. All Rights Reserved. Protected by Australian and International Copyright. Trademark Laws and Intellectual Property Rights apply.