Review of Banger Sisters, The

Introduction

Suzette is a groupie who still lives in the seventies. Unfortunately the modern world isn`t as freewheeling as she is and her lax attitude at the club where she works does little to endear her to her boss, and she ends up unemployed. In desperation, she decides to head to Phoenix to look up her friend Vinnie. Back in the day, both she and Vinnie were the Banger Sisters, so called for their voracious sexual appetites and their legendary presence among the bands. On the way, she picks up a neurotic writer who offers to pay gas money if he can get a lift to Phoenix. Harry Plummer is an unsuccessful screenwriter with a chip on his shoulder and a perfectly regimented lifestyle. Naturally he finds the outrageous Suzette a little hot to handle, but gradually warms to her. Getting to Phoenix however, Suzette finds that wild Vinnie has metamorphosed into straight-laced Lavinia Kingsley, married to an up and coming lawyer and mother to two middle class spoiled brats. Naturally Lavinia is a little reluctant to see evidence of her uninhibited youth re-enter her life and a culture clash comedy is inevitable.

Video

The Banger Sisters comes with a 2.35:1 anamorphic transfer. Clear, crisp and pristine, it`s everything that you would expect from a recent film. There`s not a lot else to say about it.

Audio

DD 5.1 English, with English subtitles, the soundtrack is perfectly adequate. Being a film about groupies, there is a good selection of tunes.

Features

There are extra features on this disc, and I shall list them below…

Blooper Reel
5 minutes of gaffes, goofs and cock-ups, unfortunately few if any will make it to Denis Nordern`s clipboard.

The HBO Special
A 14-minute making of that does exactly what it says on the tin, and nothing else. It is essentially the trailer interspersed with some interview footage. Which is convenient given that this is one of those rare discs that don`t have a trailer on it. Blimey!

Director`s Commentary with Bob Dolman
Presented in DD 2.0 Surround with English subtitles, I`d love to tell you about it, but I kept nodding off. This was in the middle of the day by the way.

Conclusion

Less of a bang and more of a whimper, The Banger Sisters failed to impress. The idea was so promising, with aging groupies reliving their wild youth that I was looking forward to this film. Alas, the execution is tame indeed as modern mainstream cinema just is unwilling to accept ideas that stray from the straight and narrow. This is one of those gentle comedies that must have heart, and a nice wholesome message. Thus the film is hamstrung from the start, and there is little the script or the cast can do to redeem it. Laughs are few and far between and the film just about keeps its head above chuckle level.

Goldie Hawn does her best with a pair of comedy breasts not seen since Gazza last played football, but her character while outrageous, outspoken and forthright, just isn`t wild enough to convince. In a strange way it`s Susan Sarandon as Vinnie who impresses in terms of comedic talent, and her domineering and preachy mother`s transformation is understated and effective. Of all the other characters, only Geoffrey Rush impresses, if only briefly. His portrayal of neurotic writer Harry Plummer comes close to stealing the movie and his dynamic with Goldie Hawn is the best thing about the picture. Unfortunately his storyline is apparently resolved far too quickly, and we tend to focus on the Banger Sisters themselves.

The whole film boils down to Suzette finally growing up, and Lavinia recapturing her youth through their reunion, and there`s far too little actual groupie action at all in the film. If like me you were expecting Thelma and Louise meets the Red Hot Chili Peppers, then you`re in for a disappointment. The picture and sound is exemplary on this disc, and there are some extras of some description as well. However the film is distinctly average and serves only to pass the time. The music itself isn`t enough to spark nostalgia. To make matters worse, just when you think it`s all over, there`s one of those life-affirming sermons in the tail. Rent if you really must.