Opening 15 Jun 2006
Directed by:
Stephen Woolley
Writing credits:
Neal Purvis, Robert Wade
Principal actors:
Leo Gregory, Paddy Considine, David Morrissey, Ben Whishaw
Stephen Woolley’s Stoned got some things right but one thing very wrong and that omission proved fatal. Hindsight is 20/20 and all that, but if Brian’s last four months alive really consisted of massive drug binges until the night of his death under mysterious circumstances, then Woolley gets the perspective right. We experience 1962-1967 through Brian’s eyes via a flashback much like an LSD trip could be. But how can you make a film about the Stones, without playing “Symphony for the Devil” and “Satisfaction”? Or without any of the other Stones’ standards recorded while Brian Jones was still in the band? Most other film elements were very convincing. The delicious decadence and serial self indulgence were everywhere. Raging hormones were everywhere. The rug and sex paraphernalia were spot-on, as well as the innocent eyes and lascivious personalities of Anita Pallenberg and Anna Wohlin. The clothes, feathers, skinny pants and all-around chaos of the times’ sensory smorgasbord created a fantastic ambiance for those sorry not to partake of the coming of the “anti-Christ.” Kudos to Brian (Leo Gregoy), Anita (Monet Mazur), Tom Keylock (David Morrissey) and Frank Thorogood (Paddy Considine) for terrific acting. But in the end, we get bored, even if we feel sorry at Brian’s wasted genius. When Anita and Keith leave Brian in Marrakech, I wish I had left with them. Why didn’t we get to see how central Brian’s role was to creating the Stones other than that one scene in the phone booth? Why was there so little screen time for Mick and Keith? While the psychodrama of Brian’s master-servant relationship wit Frank certainly merited examining, ti went on too long. By the end I just couldn’t wait for Brian to die. What is it with these rock stars and “better to burn out than to fade away”? (Rita Pearson Schwandt)
