As a big fan of The WHO, a fan of the hard rock Broadway version of TOMMY, a fan of Eric Clapton, Tina Turner, Jack Nicholson and Elton John and even the director Ken Russell, I can only sit here scratching my head at the mess I just forced myself to sit through.
1975's screen version of the Who Rock Opera must have looked great on paper. Take crazy director Russell, mix in the biggest rock and movie stars of the day with some great music, shake and serve.
Kids, this is awful.
Oliver Reed and Jack Nicholson are great actors at their mid 1970's peak, but can't sing a note. Ann Margaret is beautiful, CAN sing and dance but Russell decides to keep her in horrible outfits and have hundreds of pounds of baked beans fly out of a TV screen for her to roll around in. (I'm not kidding).
Elton John serves up the best scene in the movie as the opponent of Tommy, our deaf, dumb and blind kid, as they battle for the title of Pinball Wizard.
Roger Daltrey is good as Tommy, but most of what goes on around him is so nonsensical, so poorly edited and shot that he gets lost in the visual and aural onslaught.
The Broadway version was great, the original album is great. This is just horrible.
Maybe this is not intended for any sober viewing. You would have to alter your senses to appreciate it.
Trying to get through the last half hour, I was starting to wish I was deaf, dumb and blind too....
Tommy gets an F.
Comments