SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

Almost Famous (2000)springs from writer/director Cameron Crowe’s experiences as a writer for RollingStone magazine, including his interactions with The Allman Brothers, TheWho, and the Eagles. (Crowe won an Oscar for Best Screenplay for this movie). Thecharacter William Miller (Patrick Fugit) is Crowe’s alter-ego, and he andothers associated with rock and roll celebrities are famous adjacent,noteworthy by association. The film deals with the nature of celebrity, itshighs and lows and the fallout on those that enter its sphere, along with theneed to be independent, and not a follower.

The opening credits show how personal the story is forCrowe. A desk drawer opens and it has memorabilia of his association with rockbands. A person hand writes some of the credits on a paper pad, showing theanalog period in which the tale is told.

The movie begins in San Diego with young William (MichaelAngarano) talking to his mother, Elaine Miller (Frances McDormand, with yetanother Oscar nomination, this time for supporting actress. They discuss ToKill a Mockingbird and Shakespeare. Their exchange shows her intellectualbent.

Daughter Anita (Zoe Deschanel) comes into the house,and Elaine, a college professor, is immediately suspicious of her activities.She knows that she has been kissing a boy, and she discovers that Anita has aSimon and Garfunkel album she is clutching under her coat. Elaine warns of howmodern music is about sex and drugs and says the musical duo pictured on thealbum cover are “on pot.” These allegations seem ridiculous to us now, knowingof the beauty and insight of Simon and Garfunkel’s music. Mom is pushingvegetarian foods and not celebrating Christmas in September, not December, butwhen the holiday will not be commercialized. Anita asks, “What else are yougonna ban?” It is interesting that Elaine, a supposed liberal, can berepressive in her self-righteous attitudes.

Anita pushes the supposedly knowledge-championingElaine into telling William the truth about his age. He thinks he startedschool early and is twelve years old. Mom had him skip a grade and he is reallyeleven. The boy already feels put upon by others because he is underdevelopedaccording to them. Anita says that mom has deprived him of reaching puberty atthe same time as his peers. Self-righteous Elaine says, “Adolescence is amarketing tool,” as if it doesn’t really exist. Elaine does not believe inbeing “typical.” Her rebelliousness against anything accepted by othersstigmatizes younger people looking for community among their peers.

Anita leaves to be a stewardess, ready to travel,which Elaine said William should do when he gets older. But Elaine sees Williamas “unique,” and her daughter as “ungrateful” of her love just because she is“rebellious.” Elaine also rebels against society, but she doesn’t tolerate anydeviation from her own ideas. Anita tells William that “one day you’ll be cool,”which is what William yearns for, since it is a path to being revered byothers, and eventually, becoming famous. Anita leaves him her record collectionunder his bed, to help him along the way to the realm of coolness. She leaves anote for William to play Tommy by The Who, and says he will hear hisfuture listening to the album. It is an interesting choice. Tommy, who is notable to hear, speak, or see, is an outsider. His ability to be a pinball wizarddespite his handicaps allows him to become famous by being “cool.” But then, hewants to mold everyone into his own image, and his followers reject him forforcing his version of conformity on the masses. It is sort of an ironicmessage for William, and it sounds like a version of what happened to Elaine.

The story jumps forward to 1973, and the teenageWilliam hears music critic Lester Bangs (Philip Seymour Hoffman), who visitsSan Diego, spout his views on the current state of rock and roll on the radio. Thename “Bangs” fits what he does, whacking at the music industry. William meetsLester at the radio studio. He has been sending pieces he writes, and Lesteradmits William is a good writer. But his advice is the opposite of what hissister wanted for her brother. To be a music critic one must be “uncool,” Lestersays. That allows the writer to be objective. He must be “honest” and“unmerciful.” He says that the bands will just try to bribe the critic with booze,drugs, and women to write praiseworthy reviews. He advises that the rockmusicians are “not your friends.” Lester realizes that William will not bebetter off being a lawyer, which what his mother wanted, and he gives him a jobto write about the group, Black Sabbath.

William isn’t allowed to go backstage for hisinterview. Outside he meets Penny Lane (yes, from the Beatles song). KateHudson (also nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar) plays Penny, whotells William she altered the groupies into what she calls the “Band Aids.”They are here to inspire the musicians. She says they do not have intercoursewith the band members just to become close to those who are famous, althoughone girl says they do give “blow jobs,” which compromises the mission.

William’s knowledge of an opening band calledStillwater wins over the musicians, who at first called him “the enemy,” andthey let him go backstage. (Peter Frampton wrote the Stillwater songs for thefilm). The band first says they play for the audience, not critics. But whenWilliam compliments them, they enjoy the praise. The film shows that everyonelikes the critics when they are favorable and condemns them when they arenegative. A band member has the belief that rock and roll can change the world,but admits to lower ambitions saying the money is good, and “the chicks aregreat.”

Penny catches up with William to give him a backstagepass, so she does follow up on her intentions. She plays with his face andtells him, “now you look mysterious.” It’s as if one must have an air ofmystery, an element of being “cool,” to become popular. Just upfront honestydoes not appear to be enough. William introduces Penny to Stillwater member RussellHammond (Bully Cudrup), and there appears to be chemistry between the two.After the concert, Russell tells William to visit the band in LA and bringPenny with him. He is going under the name of “Harry Houdini.” Using an escapeartist’s name, again, shows mystery is part of the cool allure.

To stress the divide between the cool and the uncool,when Penny tells William they live in the same city, he says they live in twodifferent worlds, despite their proximity. She says she has decided to live inMorocco for a year, saying she needs to find a new crowd. Her words suggestthat the Band Aid world of girls with rock stars has become jaded for her. Sheasks him if he wants to go with her, and the excited William, hoping to breakout of his uncool world, says yes.

William lies to his mother about where he is going,and travels with Penny to LA to the Hyatt House hotel, which Russell called“The Riot House,” the play on words showing the contrast between a cool nameand an uncool one. There are nerdy types running around gushing about seeingmembers of Led Zeppelin and getting autographs, wanting to decrease the degreesof separation from those who are famous.

Polexia Aphrodisia (Anna Paquin), one of the BandAids, tells William that Penny used him so she could get close to Russell,showing how self-interest exists even under the appearance of camaraderie. Later,Penny admits to William that she sees Russell as her last project. She is trueto her words about not just being a groupie. She actually wants to help Russelllive up to his potential for greatness.

Rolling Stone getswind of William’s writing and calls him to do a piece on Stillwater. Williamcontacts Lester who again tells him not to be friends with the musicians andthat the magazine consists of “swill merchants.” While talking, he wears ashirt that says, “Detroit Sucks,” so cynical has he become. He flies hisnegativity like a nihilistic flag.

Mom, with great trepidation, insisting on academicstandards being kept, and stating “no drugs,” her mantra, allows William to goon tour with the band. When she calls, one of the Band Aids answers, who tellsmom that William is doing a great job, is a real gentleman, and is still avirgin. In other words, his uncoolness remains intact. William’s phone call tohis mother later occurs while another Band Aid talks about his “purple aura,” andthat she has pot for him, which shows how William is caught between two worlds.

William keeps trying to get an interview with Russell,but the musician says he’ll talk off the record, because he doesn’t wanthonesty to tarnish his being “cool.” But, he admits some of the band’s actions,like being unfaithful to girlfriends and wives back home, should not bediscovered by “millions.” Russell also admits that the more success the bandhas, it becomes harder to split from them, since he feels he is a more advancedmusician. He says he and William should be friends for the night, which is whatLester advised against, since journalistic integrity is lost withoutobjectivity. What the audience is seeing here is how art and personality aretwo separate worlds. While a bandmate still doesn’t trust a journalist amongthem, he admits it would be cool to be on the cover of Rolling Stone.The ambivalent world of rock stars is evident here.

At a concert, Russell receives an electric shock froman ungrounded microphone. This scene is based on a true event. According toIMDb, Les Harvey of Stone the Crows died due to being electrocuted by anungrounded mic. Here, the image implies how being in a rock band, which isrebellious while still seeking acceptance, can be dangerous.

In Topeka, the band has a blow-up about T-shirts that depictRussell large and the others out-of-focus in the background. The lead singer, JeffBebe (Jason Lee) is particularly feeling unappreciated by Russell. After theargument, Russell grabs William to go out and find some “real people, realfeelings.” That suggests that the rock business is feeling phony to him. He, aswell as Penny and some others, may find that they can be close to Williambecause of his youth. They may be attracted to what they see is his innocence,his lack of corruption.

Russell says William is real and finally asks abouthim. William admits to his father dying of a heart attack and how his motherand sister don’t talk. There is some actual sharing in the moment. Then theyget invited to a party by passersby, and Russell agrees that they should go. Russellfeels that connecting to these “real people” are what he is after. At theparty, he is feeling intellectual, talking about how George Orwell’s predictionsin 1984 are coming true. The response is that one guy wants to show himfeed a mouse to his snake. So much for grand ideas.

William becomes the adult here as he warns thepartygoers not to give Russell more LSD. Instead of connecting with realpeople, Russell delves into the delusional, yelling out, “I am a golden god!”which was attributed to Led Zeppelin singer, Robert Plant. He is on the roofand says that his last words are “I’m on drugs” which the crowd prefers to “Idig music,” and they want him to risk his life, jumping into the pool then justgoing back to the hotel. The movie implies that the fans want the outrageousfrom their idols so they can live vicariously through their heroes doingactions that they can’t or won’t do.

William gets Russell back with the band and badfeelings evaporate as the whole touring bus sings along to Elton John’s “TinyDancer.” So, music is still the glue that holds them together. William needs toget his interview with Russell before going home. Penny tells him he is “home.”And there lies the conflict. William is in and out of his true home.

In the hotel room William gets advice over the phonefrom Lester about how to stall Rolling Stone by calling his article a“think-piece” about a “mid-level band” dealing with fame. It may be a ploy, butit actually fits what’s going on. When William asks Penny, after she continuesto name-drop rock stars, if she knows any regular people, she says “famouspeople are more interesting.” That shows the opposite drive from a regularperson, as opposed to Russell’s urge to connect with “real” people. They showthe desire to break out of where one currently resides.

The Band Aids decide to “de-flower” William, but Pennydoes not participate. Their friendship appears to be on a different level. Theother girls are just playing around with no real connection to the youngwriter. When he asks them who he is to them he gets his answer when they tellhim to take out the laundry.

Now in Cleveland, he has a phone call with his mother.Russell interrupts it and tells Elaine that William is fine, and they aretaking good care of him. She, however, cuts through his crap, and tells himthat he can overcome his debauchery to reach greatness, and that he would notwant to meet up with her if anything unsavory happens to her son. Russellalters his attitude, becoming subservient, as if receiving parental guidancethat he needed.

Dennis Hope (Jimmy Fallon) arrives, a big-name bandpromoter, saying Stillwater needs to move fast to capitalize on theirincreasing success. (His name “Hope” is a bit ironic here, as he is more foropportunity than the idealistic feel of “hope). He says they must cash inquickly, saying Mick Jagger will not make it as a rock star when he’s fifty. (Jaggerstill tours at age 82. So, the implication is that one can play the long game).But Stillwater goes with Hope, and they trade in their trusty touring bus foran airplane for transportation to reach more gigs quicker.

William witnesses a card game between rock bandmembers, and Russell agrees to give up Penny and the other Band Aids for fiftydollars and a case of beer to the rock group Humble Pie. William is becomingmore cynical about the rock business, and accepts the original idea of him,being a journalist, as “the enemy” who can expose secrets. When Penny wants togo to New York to pursue Russell it is William who tells her to “wake up,” sinceLeslie (Liz Stauber), Russell’s girlfriend, will be there. He then tells herabout the poker game. She tries to hide her hurt. As William points out thereis so much phoniness, that they live in a made-up life, with invented names.

In New York, Leslie shows up, but so does Penny, andshe is crushed when another band member says she is with him as a diversion. AfterWilliam tells the band they will be on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine,Penny runs off and tries to overdose on Quaaludes. William follows her andcalls a doctor at the hotel. She is alone as she feels deserted since the otherBand Aids have gone off with other rock groups. She is collateral damage to thefame of others. William says a funny line to the almost unconscious Penny whenhe changes the opening line of Star Trek by saying he’s going where manyhave gone before, and tells her he loves her, which he follows with a kiss.

As Penny gets her stomach pumped, we ironically hear“My Cherie Amour,” whose lyrics about the pretty little girl who is adoredcontrast with the upsetting scene before William. Later he finally learns herreal name is Lady Goodman, which she says her mother thought she would becomeand who she would marry. He says goodbye as she flies back home to San Diego.

The band is on a plane that hits an electrical storm.When it looks like they might not make it, they start to shout out confessions.One admits to being a hit-and-run driver, another says he is gay, Jeff says heslept with Leslie, and the affair between Russell and Penny comes out. Whenthey call Penny just a “groupie,” William gets angry and says she cared aboutthe band and they just used her, and he was in love with her. The threat ofdeath makes everyone become real quickly, no longer hiding behind their falsepersonas. As Russell and William say goodbye, Russell no longer is trying to suppressanything ugly about the band. He tells William to write whatever he wants.

At the Rolling Stone office William is grilledabout what he has submitted, and he asks for one night to clean up the story. Hetalks to Lester, who again tells him he can’t be friends with the musicians. Heknows they made William feel “cool,” but he is not cool, and neither is Lester.They are the “uncool.” And, Lester says most great art is about them. He saysthe art of those who are cool doesn’t last. The real art is about, “pain andconflict and guilt and longing.” Lester again says the best William can do forthe musicians is to be “honest and unmerciful.”

William writes honestly and the magazine loves hisstory, especially about the confessions on the airplane. But when thefactchecker calls the band, they feel like they all come off badly, in otherwords “uncool,” which is exactly how they behaved. The film suggests honestythat shows people as vulnerable is not what hero-worshipping is about. Russelldenies almost all of the story, and the magazine drops William’s piece.

William meets his sister, Anita, at the airport in SanFrancisco. She sees that he has broken free of their mother and says they canhave an adventure together. But, he decides at this point he needs the comfortand safety of home after his initiation into the actualities of his idealizedvision of modern musicians. Mom is happy to see both her children despite theirdisobeying her. The implication is that unconditional love works that way.

At the end of the Stillwater tour, it takes one of theBand Aids, Sapphire (Fairuza Balk), to shame Russell about ditching Penny,almost causing her suicide, and denying William’s story. She says that being atrue fan is dedicating yourself to the music and the band that creates it. Here,the dedicated fans come off as the honest ones.

Russell calls Penny. At first he lies, saying thereare a lot of people around, so he can’t say much. He then realizes truth is theway to go and admits he is alone. He says he is sorry, and he’s best when he isaround her. He wants her address so he can, this time, come to her.

She gives him an address, but it is William’s. When hearrives, Elaine says there’s hope for Russell yet, and she’s right. He called RollingStone and said everything William wrote was true. He realizes that theyboth wanted to be with Penny, but she wanted them to be together, so that iswhy she gave him William’s address. Russell realizes he never knew Penny’s realname. William smiles, because he does, which makes him feel special. Williamfinally gets the interview with Russell he was aiming for, and it will be anhonest one.

Penny flies off to Morocco where she said she alwayswanted to go. She seems to realize that it’s not just famous people who areinteresting. By following her dream, so is she.