Almost Famous - Definition and Overview

Almost Famous is a semi-autobiographical film, written and directed by Cameron Crowe, and released in 2000. The film is a fictionalized account of Crowe as a teen-aged journalist for Rolling Stone, particularly inspired by his experiences accompanying the Allman Brothers on the road, which led to his first cover story for the magazine.

The film's award-winning soundtrack featured an eclectic mix of period rock, other period genres, and songs written expressly for the movie. Notable were Paul Simon's America and Elton John's Tiny Dancer and Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters.

The film stars:

• Billy Crudup and Jason Lee, as lead members of the fictitious band Stillwater, an amalgamation of several bands that Crowe wrote about
• Frances McDormand and Zooey Deschanel, as the mother and sister of the protagonist and Crowe's alter ego, played by Patrick Fugit
• Kate Hudson, Fairuza Balk, Anna Paquin, and Bijou Phillips, as groupies known as the "Band Aids" (Hudson's character Penny Lane was based on "rock star muse" Bebe Buell)
• Philip Seymour Hoffman, as journalism mentor Lester Bangs; Bangs was a real-life character.

The film received four Oscar nominations, one of which led to an award to Crowe for his screenplay. It was also awarded the 2001 Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media.

External links

• December 1973 cover of Rolling Stone (http://www.rollingstone.com/photos/bigphoto.asp?gid=47&s=21&e=25&seq=24)
• IMDb (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0181875/)
• Original movie script (http://www.dailyscript.com/scripts/almost_famous.html) containing scenes never shown in cinema but available on the director's cut