When I saw the video for the Janet Jackson song "When I Think of You", it was shot using a series of very elaborate moving camera or "tracking" shots. When I saw the video, I thought that it looked just like this movie. This is no coincidence because both projects were directed by Julian Temple. That memory brings up a complaint about this project. The main complaint when this film came out was that it was too much like a music video, more interest was paid to visual spectacle and not enough on character development. True, the characters are drawn broadly but I think the approach works because it is a musical. I had no trouble understanding the basic action, I could easily tell one character from another and I even understood the basic motives of everyone involved. I also love a lot of the British slang used in the project, even though I didn't quite get some of it at the time. I have no idea if this is now a "cult film" or not but it ought to be. It is enjoyable and tells compelling story which is based on a novel that was written after an actual "colour riot" happened in London in the summer of 1958. I think this film was a little ahead of its time and deserves to be rediscovered just they did with "Blade Runner" directed by fellow Brit, Ridley Scott. Let's hope that happens soon. I'd like to see Temple make more films.
Review of Absolute Beginners
