“Go sell Girl Scout cookies,” somebody says in the very brief, somewhat on-the-nose teaser trailer for Floria Sigismondi’s directorial debut “The Runaways,” the biopic about the short lived girl punk band that launched the careers (most famously) of Joan Jett, Micki Steele and Lita Ford. It’s only fifty seconds long, so there isn’t much we can say about it. Dakota Fanning is pretty unrecognizable and her make up seems to be channeling Diane Lane’s Corinne Burns from “Ladies And Gentleman, The Fabulous Stains” (though hopefully “Runaways” is much better than that overrated cult film) and Kristen Stewart seems to have switched gears from moping in “Twilight” to raging here. We kind of dig it.
If we do have one concern, it’s that the look of the film – and, again, we’re judging this on a very brief teaser – is surprisingly flat. Sigismondi has built a career making visually inventive videos for artists like Bjork, Sigur Ros, The White Stripes, Fiona Apple and Marilyn Manson, but the footage here seems very…..ordinary. But that could just be how the trailer is cut.
“The Runaways” will premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, and is slated to hit theaters on March 19, 2010.
I wonder how much freedom the director had to create an bold look or an edgy narrative to capture the spirit of The Runaways. I can imagine that Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning would have tons and tons of "people" vetoing creative decisions if they believe it compromised their image.
Then again, Dakota Fanning was raped in that other movie.
Does Kristen Stewart ever stop biting her lip?!?!
Sigismondi's direction is the one thing that held my interest in this film, so to see it look so conventional is disheartening. But her trademark use of dramatic lighting and colors is here, I see…
she wasn't biting her lip.. stop being obsessed over her lips get some of your own idiot
Why is she always biting her lip?
For some strange reason I am offended by the trailer.
Not going to lie, I think they nailed Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett.
I agree but I'm not sure of Dakota Fanning singing