neumu [ cinematronic ]




	24 Hour Party People
	Michael Winterbottom Steve Coogan, Shirley Henderson, Paddy Considine, Sean Harris, Danny Cunningham, Andy Serkis, Chris Coghill, Lennie James 2002 Widescreen; closed caption; Spanish, French, Portuguese, English subtitles; audio commentary with Steve Coogan and producer Andrew Eaton; audio commentary with Tony Wilson; two featurettes; deleted scenes; photo gallery; theatrical trailer.		Witty, urbane and kinetic, "24 Hour Party People" is so energizing that watching it is like inhaling a tank full of oxygen with an Ecstasy chaser, even if a lot of the film takes place in smoky nightclubs and marijuana-hazy back rooms. Director Michael Winterbottom's gleefully fictionalized docu-comedy traces the rise and demise of the "Madchester" music scene in Manchester, England, from the '70s to the '90s, dramatizing some of the key bands that made it vital: Joy Division, New Order, Buzzcocks and Happy Mondays. The centerpiece of "24 Hour Party People" is a marvelous, tongue-in-cheek turn by British comic Steve Coogan. He has a ball as TV news reporter Tony Wilson, crazed visionary behind the influential indie-record label Factory Records and the landmark techno-disco The Hacienda, cited as the birthplace of rave culture. A doughty ensemble personifies the gaggle of musicians, producers and hangers-on that made it happen, a few of the original party people have small parts, and the period soundtrack rules!