Stephanie (Jane Levy) wants to be a singer in NYC. She worships teen idol Bobby Shore. When the chemical plant has a mishap, her life with Bobby becomes a reality for her, yet she also has nightmares.
This is an odd well performed film, however the dark comedy and message about a chemical induced reality may slip by most viewers. It is like watching "Eraserhead" but it was easier to understand.
I found the film mildly entertaining, but it seemed long at 89 minutes as the plot stagnates.
Guide: 2 F-bombs. Implied sex. No nudity. Musical Numbers
Bang Bang Baby
2014
Action / Drama / Fantasy / Musical / Romance / Sci-Fi
Bang Bang Baby
2014
Action / Drama / Fantasy / Musical / Romance / Sci-Fi
Keywords: musicalsmall town1960srock starmutations
Plot summary
A small town teenager in the 1960s believes her dreams of becoming a famous singer will come true when her rock star idol gets stranded in town. But a leak in a nearby chemical plant that is believed to be causing mass mutations threatens to turn her dream into a nightmare.
Uploaded by: FREEMAN
Director
Top cast
Tech specs
720p.BLU 1080p.BLUMovie Reviews
I MAKE DREAMS, NOT NIGHTMARES
weird and interesting
It's 1963. Stepphy (Jane Levy) is a small town Canadian teen desperate to break into the music world. She records a song demo and sends it to New York City. She gets accepted into their contest. Her dad George Holiday (Peter Stormare) refuses to allow her to go. The local chemical plant accidentally releases a toxic gas. After a bad school dance with Fabian, she gets picked up by her singing idol Bobby Shore (Justin Chatwin) and his German friend Helmut. Fabian tells her that the chemicals may cause mutations.
This is a weird little Canadian indie musical. I like Jane Levy although she's not a top singing talent. Her singing is good show tune level. The old fashion crooning does get tiring which slows down the pacing. Filmmaker Jeffrey St. Jules seems to have quite a few ideas although they need to be sharpened into something with a bigger punch. I like the first half hour with its surreal touches but it descends into surreal dream chaos. It goes from cute weird to crazy melodramatic weird. It's not crazy enough to be outrageous but it is crazy enough to be non-traditional. It's weird and interesting. It's not cohesive enough as a story.
Wow, what a downer!
When I heard this was an absurdist musical with mutants, I assumed it was going to be a comedy. It's not. This movie had some interesting ideas and played with what is real and fantasy, but the whole thing is just so miserable to watch. I don't know who I would possibly recommend this to.