Airheads (1994)

IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109068/

Official Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FD9a_EVDk-s

BEFORE THE VIEWING

There's a lot of star power in "Airheads". Maybe not stars at the time of its release, but by the time I picked up the DVD in some bargain bin, the three leading actors had enough skill in my eyes to be worth the 5-ish bucks.

I can see why this movie didn't make a killing commercially; it's hard to sell a hostage situation as a comedy. And there's a grainy quality to the production, probably because most of it was shot inside a radio station. Have you ever been in a real radio station? I interned at one, and while it was an interesting place to work, it wasn't exactly a glamorous or visually-stunning environment.

But the thing I always took away from "Airheads" was the importance of passion. These guys weren't stone cold thugs or heartless criminals, they were three guys who wanted their music to mean something. I saw that passion particularly well-played by Brendan Fraser, who's always had a little chunk of my heart (and who I'll gush about again in future posts for movies like "Bedazzled" and "The Mummy").

When I watched the trailer, I was reminded of some other surprise appearances. So whatever the quality of the film may be, I know I'm in for a good 92 minutes.

AFTER THE VIEWING

Man, Brendan Fraser and Steve Buscemi can rock long hair. I always forget how good those two (and Adam Sandler) looked in this movie. Chazz's low-slung belt over holey jeans? Pip with his pants around his ankles and a beanie covering his junk? Yowza. The overall looks of the characters (even the supporting ones!) are so well crafted; I'd never really noticed before.

And jeez, the supporting cast and crew in this film is spectacular. So many names and faces with long careers in show biz: Michael Richards, Judd Nelson, Chris Farley, Ernie Hudson, Michael McKean, David Arquette. And new ones that I noticed this time around - like Michelle Hurst (Yvonne), who went on to play Miss Claudette in "Orange is the New Black", and Carter Burwell, a composer who's been attached to three "Twilight" films, "In Bruges", "Being John Malkovich", and so many others.

But what about the actual story, the actual film? Well, there's a scene in which the radio DJ puts Chazz on the spot and asks him what he wants to say, and the best Chazz can come up with is an emphatic "ROCK AND ROLLLLLL!" It's a pure message, but not very sophisticated or meaningful...and that's pretty much how this whole movie feels to me.

That doesn't mean the film is bad, necessarily. In fact, a lot of movies that try to say something meaningful end up saying way too much, or nothing at all. But I guess maybe "rock and roll" isn't a theme that resonates with me, or other movies have done a better job of conveying what rock and roll is ("Almost Famous" or even The Monkees' movie "'Head'" are the two that immediately spring to my mind).

Still, "Airheads" isn't a bad way to spend an hour and a half.

Overall rating: 3 out of 5

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