FILM: PJ20 – FREELANCE PRIMATE
Review By Dan Jensen
Director: Cameron Crowe
Cast: Pearl Jam
Review: Pearl Jam are one of those bands that have that rare characteristic of longevity. Having been at the forefront of the Seattle grunge explosion in the early ‘90s, they released their 9th studio album in 2009 to much critical praise. Though their musical style has ebbed and flowed over the years, they still boast having 4 of the 5 original members of the group and an undying honesty to their fans.
Prior to achieving success as a filmmaker with such hits as Jerry Maguire and Almost Famous, Cameron Crowe started out as a rock journalist. He found himself in the midst of the birth of the Seattle music scene in 1989, and was able to associate himself with many of the emerging bands, such as Mother Love Bone. After they tragically lost their charismatic singer, Andy Wood, to a drug overdose, the remnants of this band carried on and eventually became Mookie Blaylock, named after a basketball player. But upon receiving word that Blaylock may disapprove of his name being used in such a way they changed it to Pearl Jam.
To celebrate the 20th year of the band’s existence (hence the title), Crowe has put together a remarkable tribute. Compiled from very early (and rare) footage from the band’s beginning, recent interviews, television appearances, concerts, and even an amusing Celebrity Deathmatch snippet, this documentary will not only appeal to fans but could very well grab the interest of those who have no knowledge of the band. What we have here is the true story of a band who have experienced enough highs and lows to tell a captivating story. There were the rather funny moments – the band not happy at having to perform on one occasion, singer Eddie Vedder kept trying to tell the sound person to turn up their monitors. In a drunken stupor, he tore down the partition surrounding the technicians and realized he’d been signaling the lighting guy. In an interview he admitted to wondering why it kept getting brighter on stage. There were the engrossing parts – court case footage from when the band took on Ticketmaster, accusing the corporation of ripping off the fans with high fees. And the tragic moments, such as the band’s reaction to fans being killed in a crowd surge at the Roskilde music festival. Seeing Vedder’s face on the stage screens as it happened was quite chilling. And for the fans there were some truly magic moments, such as seeing the band perform their most famous hit, Alive, during their second ever show. We also learn more about the song’s meaning, and the inclusion of one simple extra word during this performance adds new weight to the lyrics.
The film was very well edited, using many different formats that all blended perfectly. When witnessing music history before your very eyes it’s easy to forgive the use of streaky VHS footage. The 2-hour running time flew by without a dull moment. Coming from a fan’s perspective, I found it to be highly entertaining, and I learned a lot that I didn’t already know from the intimacy with which the film was crafted. Whether or not a more casual fan would be interested in seeing it or not is their choice, but I believe there is enough within its content to please not just those who like the band but also anyone who enjoys a good documentary.
