Far from Perfect, Far from Terrible

Awesome Movie

The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

Horrible all the way around. Only if interest for fans of REALLY obscure cinema, I rate this for the bottom 200. In fact I would put this right at number 50, because like everything else in this piece of garbage it has Just Enough to save it from a 1 star rating.First the Good. The Jimi Hendrix actor is passable. Jim looks like a Halloween costume, and Janis looks nothing at all like Janis Joplin.All the songs are soundalikes, obviously as a movie of this budget could never get the rights to classic hits. BUT, the soundalikes honestly do sound like what the artist would be doing in 1982, had they lived. Too bad this movie takes place in 1968-1971. Get my drift? There is enough here to bear watching this train smash --- but only to have it fail 90% of the time.The actual story was kinda decent, has it been directed by an Oliver Stone, we might have an actual movie here.The budget SEVERELY limits this film... instead of Janis's signature 1/5th of SOCO she drinks from a pint of whatever, and even uses and 80's style juicer.In the scene where the UK cover of Electric Ladyland is shot, instead of a mountain of nude women, we get 2 topless ones...It goes on and on and on... deserves a Rifftrack... but this movie runs 2 HOURS... are you kidding? Only of interest to people who like to go to sleep or vomit. It's bad.

The inimitable schlockmeister Larry Buchanan must have really poured his heart and soul into this broccoli-fart...it's far more polished than any of the other pictures I've seen by him. That said, it is also possibly the worst film about rock and roll ever made, and paroxysmal laughter is one-hundred percent guaranteed.This is an intellectually-challenged conspiracy feature which brings to light the shocking "truth" about the wild lives and untimely deaths of three rock legends-- Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, and Janis Joplin. As you will see...they did NOT die from drug overdoses, as claimed the headlines...nope. The startling fact is that they were murdered by an elite group of assassins because they were subversive counterculture mavericks leading a massive youth rebellion during the Vietnam war! One of them may have been spared...but why spoil a novel "twist" ending?You know you're in for a really stinky treat when the cover of a video about these long-dead rock legends boasts that there are "12 original songs", but frankly, a better than expected job was done making them sound authentic. In fact, the ersatz Doors pieces are frighteningly believable. Less believable, however, are the performances by the leads...they should thank God that they never became famous, because there's no way in all hell they'd ever be able to live this one down.Big cheers for the MC5 poster, gratuitous groupie boobs, and one of the famed penis immortalizers hauling her plaster-casting gear around in a vintage Carousel wig box.Seven and one half stars(of ten), for all the wrong reasons.

Larry Buchanan. Yep, same guy who did "Attack of the THE Eye Creatures" and two (count 'em: TWO) conspiracy movies about Marilyn Monroe. He's to blame, here.Adding onto his ever-growing pile of folders left over from Oliver Stone's "eh-I-grew-out-of-it" conspiracy drawer, here's "Down On Us (i.e.- "Beyond the Doors") which is the working definition of historical inaccuracy.Forget everything you THOUGHT you knew about Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison, says Big Lar', cuz this is the real deal! Y'see, the three big names in rock of the '60s were KILLED BY THE GOVERNMENT because they were subversives or counter-productive to Truth, Justice and the American Way, or sumpthin' like that there. I knew it all along.Anyway, three people (Chatman, Meryl, Wolf) who look eerily like their real life shadows (that is, if you completely close your eyes, turn your backs and walk five miles away from them) show that instead of their recorded deaths, the good old US of A put hits out on them! Yep, it's the truth!Man, I cannot believed I watched this movie. It's facts, when not stretching credibility to the snapping point, are ludicrous; the acting makes TV commercials look like high drama and if you honestly watch it through to the end, you deserve the "twist" ending. You really, really do; I swear. Genius.But like the man said: "Rock and roll is dead - long live rock and roll."Not this flick, though.No stars for "Down on Us". And that's the movie audience describing the film, by the way....

Schlock master Larry Buchanan combines his love of conspiracy theories with his amazing ability to present unrealistic history in this movie, perhaps the worst rock music related film ever made. The actors only vaguely resemble Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Jim Morrison, and produce amusing sound alike fake music for the soundtrack. All musical performances take place on the same cheap set which is said to be in different places all over the world. Everything has an extreme bargain basement quality about it. A lot more fun to watch than Woodstock.