ROCK N ROLL REDUCTION & THE NEW CORPORATE THREAT: Get Crazy (1983)

The movie you are about to witness tonight is a grand, vulgar, grotesque little comedy brought to you by the Director who made the now legendary Rock N Roll High School, Mr. Alan Arkush. It has all of the same attributes- gross out comedy, great music, colorful fun, and a villain hell bent on destroying true rock n roll music. In this case the enemy is a corporate devil named Colin Beverly, who wants to blow up one of the finest concert halls- The Saturn Theater- and replace it with a high priced, arena cum entertainment multi-plex. The Saturn Theater's owner, Max, refuses to sell out to the almighty dollar, stating "I put on shows at the Saturn so kids can see the stage, afford the tickets, and hear the music- so screw stadiums!"   Greedy industrialist Beverly retorts "This building is coming down and 88 stories are going up- So fuck you, and fuck rock n' roll!" This sets the scene, and off we go into a wild, wacky, wonderful night of new wave, punk, and hard rocking New Year's Eve fun, as romances flourish, drugs are taken, and the battle for salt of the earth, soulful entertainment versus crass commercialism rages onward. The movie is top heavy with rock stars- John Densmore, Lee Ving, Lou Reed- playing some parody of themselves, or other rock n roll stereotypes. Malcom McDowell does one of the single greatest Mick Jagger parodies you may ever see, the general vibe pure definition of what makes a great rock n roll experience- community, adventure, curiosity, and a willingness to have fun, enjoy the moment, and meet those who share this desire. Stadium shows represent the most commercialized, conformist wing of the entertainment business- they exist to maximize profit and diminish the living, breathing, feeling closeness of a theater- or club, show. Which is something entirely different, an institution that thankfully will never go away- no matter what money is on offer.