my mom was watching this the other day and i kinda spaced out and thought she said it was tommy boy (1995) so i just stood there in confused silence for about six minutes wondering where the hell david spade was

i can't believe this movie about roger daltrey becoming a pinball master is the only thing that makes me feel slightly less suicidal

A great oddity to behold, the big screen translation of The Who's Tommy is exclusively for fans of the band and admirers of Ken Russell. Attempting to catch up on all things Russell this year, I'm easily becoming a huge fan of his style. The man is a master of provocative imagery and this opera overfloweth with intoxicating gusto and memorable sequences just like everything I've so far seen from him. Like I said, the story is first and foremost for fans of the music, but who would blindly throw on Tommy without any knowledge of The Who? I slowly but surely grew tired of Ann Margaret as it went, but there are more than enough showstopping cameos and Oliver Reed secretly steals every moment like he does in every Russell film he's in.

TOMMY RULES OK

I love Ken Russell's orgiastic and exceedingly homoerotic take on the Who's muddled concept record, but the way he explicitly links Keith Moon's pedophilic Uncle Ernie to homosexuality -- for no specific reason and in a throwaway shot -- is particularly vile. That's some Anita Bryant shit, and so out of place in a movie that tries so hard to be camp that it unintentionally becomes an entirely different type of it.

Still, getting to see this in a theater with the restored quintaphonic soundtrack cranked up is an overwhelming experience. As far as operatic pop musicals go, I'd kinda take this over something like The Umbrellas of Cherbourg. There, I said it.

If you combined mother! and Pink Floyd's The Wall, you would get this movie.

Upon another rewatch, the production and costume design is truly impeccable. The level of detail in every shot it incredible.

The subtext of Cousin Ernie is truly noxious tho, and I am surprised The Who and Ken Russel left that in.

SEE ME. FEEL ME. TOUCH ME. HEAL ME.

Blu Ray
<3

Perhaps I need to see more of Ken Russell's work, but I was kind of meh on this. I was never a fan of this album, though I like The Who in general and how experimental they were. The movie certainly goes to some strange places, but it seems the main purpose was to shock/provoke rather than to create something artistic and memorable.

Psychedelic as all fuck, with some gonzo imagery and wonderfully over the top performances (Ann-Margret is great, so is Tina Turner). I'm a fan of The Who as well, so I dug most of the songs. I don't know, there is a lot to appreciate here, but it's just too long and the story wears thin as it goes on. If this thing were 20 mins shorter (or if I had a second joint) it probably would have been great.

WOW

Some remarkable visuals, and All Very Ken, though it feels more like a succession of music videos than a real movie – and unwittingly highlights just how thin the concept underpinning the (cracking) concept album is.

I work with [name drop] Daltrey now and then in the day job and always forget how damn sexy he was back then. The last time I saw him and [clunk] Clapton together was a week ago, as they accepted an award at the Royal Albert Hall. Here they have a scene where Clapton plays a singing preacher in a Marilyn Monroe-themed church while Roger pretends to be blind. Good times.

Eric and Tina bring it, though. An extra half a star for Elton’s big shoes.

I wanted to love this, because the album was amazing, but I just wasn't on board with so much of the execution here.

the ending gives me chills every time. also i just really like the who.