You needn't know anything about the late '70s music scene in Manchester, England, to enjoy 24 Hour Party People [2] (2002).
Certainly you may better appreciate the accomplishment of Michael Winterbottom [3]'s movie if you have a working knowledge of groups like Joy Division [4] and Siouxsie and the Banshees [5] and of the origins of rave culture [6].
24 Hour Party People is such a kinetic, cheeky, freewheeling experience that you can go into it cold and still be seduced by the energy blasting off the screen.
A good deal of that power comes from Winterbottom's technique, a happy mishmash of caught-on-the-fly digital video and mind-warping effects (deliberately smeary images, jittery handheld cameras, bizarre lighting, and even a few Forrest Gump [7]-type scenes in which actors are inserted into 25-year-old archival footage).
But the real engine driving this romp is Steve Coogan [9], the Brit standup comic who makes an indelible impression as Tony Wilson [10].
Wilson, a real-life Manchester TV personality, was blown away when the Sex Pistols [11] came to town. He was so inspired as to launch a career that would include his own pop music-oriented TV show, creation of a his own label (Factory Records [12]), the nurturing of various punk and post-punk musicians, the founding of a nightclub, and a good deal of sexual and financial profligacy.
Coogan's Wilson is a self-important, Cambridge-educated pseudo-intellectual who believes he's being wasted on the silly feature stories assigned by his station’s management. Ambitious as all get-out, he has set his cap on becoming the musical arbiter of a generation, and he untiringly cajoles, finagles, and lies his way toward that goal.
Just what motivates Wilson, other than a burning desire to make things happen, is a bit of a mystery. He's not given to deep introspection, and he often hides behind displays of pompous erudition. But like all con artists, he's a charmer, and we're carried along by his smug good humor.
Frank Cottrell Boyce [13]'s screenplay breaks down the fourth wall by having Wilson talk directly to the audience. Without breaking character, Coogan will deliver asides or even stop a scene to point out real Manchester music scene personalities – including the real Tony Wilson himself – who have taken roles as extras.
The result is a breezy, surreal, often drug-addled guided tour of Wilson's world. Featured on the soundtrack are recordings by the Buzzcocks [14], A Certain Ratio [15], the Sex Pistols, Joy Division, New Order [16], and Happy Mondays [17].
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