Perhaps because he is well aware that he is no longer at the height of the success that Stereo Dream gave him, the boyband he joined twenty years ago, Vince (Ed Skrein) does not feel ashamed when he has to carry his keyboard supported by an old ironing board. in search of a place that allows him to play his “song proposals” live as a soloist. Noticeably different from the young Vinnie D, today he looks somewhat wrinkled, with messy hair and also very hungry.
Tired of so much walking, Vince sits on a bench in the humble neighborhood of Peckham, in London, to tune one of his possible new songs. Just seconds into the start, a young man wielding drumsticks (Stevie/ Leo Long) begins to keep up, banging hard first on a bench and then on the irons of a trash can. What initially annoyed Vince ends up surprising him. And the applause from the surrounding audience (something he had probably forgotten over the years) amazes him.
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So far we have told the initial plot of “I Was Famous”, a film directed by Eddie Sternberg that has just been released on Netflix. It is a musical comedy that jumps into drama at just the right moments. The film tells the story of a retired artist from a boy band who, completely removed from endless tours and gold records, cannot shake the feeling of guilt for having missed the last birthday of his younger brother, who died some time ago of a painful disease.
As those over 30 probably remember well, boy bands caused a furor at the time, presented to handsome young men who, helped by charisma and – on many occasions by playback – resonated in different latitudes. Although some of these guys later managed to make their own way (Justin Timberlake, perhaps the most popular case), others ended up in complete nothingness.
Going back to the story, Vince is convinced that Stevie is the drummer who can help him get back on his feet. Although he initially ignores his autistic condition, he soon finds out because she is his mother, Amber/Eleanor Matsuura, who points it out to him using a more threatening warning. The young mother of this ‘diamond in the rough’ (with no husband or boyfriend in sight) put aside her passion for dance to give everything for her son. She follows him as if she were her shadow to protect him from bullying and also reaches for her drumsticks to calm him down with the simple rattle of both sticks on any flat surface.
Now that both main characters are known, “I was famous” is revealed as a portrait of the differences that can turn two men into unexpected friends. Vince has had a taste of fame, while Stevie stays in her room almost protected from the outside environment. Vince walked away from his mother after the death of her brother, while Stevie can’t shake even the shadow of his.
A separate point here. Although only twenty years have passed since his peak moment in Stero Dream, Vince seems to be stuck in the past. So when an ex-fan turned hater today shows him the success of the viral video of him playing with Stevie in Peckham, he can’t believe it. So he decides to take this clip to the bars that have already rejected him more than once. Then the first light of hope lights up.
Among the various elements that “I was famous” successfully presents is, invariably, its universe of innocence and naturalness, attributed to the humble suburbs where the least you see are millionaires and luxurious cars, but perhaps a lot of cool people. ‘. Graffiti facades, markets with as many British citizens as immigrants, adorn a fundamentally compelling proposal. The latter is perhaps much more noticeable in the neighborhood musical group that Stevie is a member of, which Vince joins first out of “interest” and then out of a genuine desire to feel in company.
But beyond the new ‘world’ that Vince integrates in Peckham, the protagonist of this story seems willing to do anything to rise to stardom once again. That’s why he seeks out the most successful of his former Stereo Dream teammates (Austin / Eoin Macken) to lend him a hand. In the middle of a luxurious musical studio he will remember how his adolescence ended between massive concerts and the abandonment of his sick brother.
Eddie Sternberg’s film has one of its great strengths in the aforementioned differences between its protagonists: someone who wants to take on the world versus someone who just wants a good friend. As viewers begin to marvel at the chemistry between a brilliant autistic boy and a downtrodden keyboard player, it will be the former’s mother who – out of her natural desire to be overprotective – becomes an obstacle to moving things forward.
One might feel that “I Was Famous” reminds one of different movies with this tone. From “The Soloist” (with Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr.), to the recently awarded CODA, where Emilia Jones plays Ruby Rossi, an aspiring singer raised in a family of deaf and dumb fishermen. But allowing us a license, this new audiovisual product also has extremely magical moments such as those transmitted by “Under the same star”, an adaptation of the novel of the same name written by John Green.
Can Vince and Stevie form a successful musical duo despite the difficulties of starting from scratch in today’s music world? Will Amber understand that music may be able to give her protégé son Stevie the world she couldn’t? Will Vince understand that in order for others to forgive you, you must first forgive yourself? These are just some of the questions that viewers will be answering as the minutes of “I was famous” pass, a moving journey through the most sublime of the human race: friendship.
“I WAS FAMOUS” – NETFLIX
Gender: music, drama
Country and year: Great Britain, 2022.
Director: Eddie Sternberg
Distribution: Ed Skrein, Leo Long, Eleanor Matsuura
Synopsis: A former boy band star gets a second chance when he teams up with a talented drummer.
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