One major issue in Almost Famous that is still relevant to today is the constant struggle between external pressures and staying true to oneself. We see several instances of this issue throughout the movie. William must decide whether he should simply portray the band as “cool” or elucidate the true events of his experience. Russell suggests that he has the option of leaving the band based on his superior talent. The band as a whole is a representation of this struggle, finding themselves at the crossroads of remaining independent or giving in to commercial interests. This issue is something that people deal with everyday. Throughout my life, and particularly in college, I realize how important it is to know who I am as person whenever I am forced to make a tough decision or deal with hard times. Most of the time, staying true to yourself is the best option, even though it may not be immediately evident. Take William's experience for example. When he decided to tell the truth about Stillwater, his story was called a fake and all his work seemed to be in vain. Eventually, Russell realized that he needed to make things right and things seem to work out in the end. However, if the movie had not ended this way, (if Russell had not corrected his lie) it is difficult to say whether or not giving in to the external pressures may have been the better option for him.
Would you rather give in to society's demands instead of staying true to yourself, especially when giving in seems all the more appealing?
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This is very true, throughout the movie, there are many instances where William is bombarded with alcohol and drugs. There is a time in everyone's life when they want to fit in and be cool which many times leads to doing something irresponsible but William stays strong throughout the entire movie. There is not a single point in the movie when he is ashamed of being himself. His personality contrasts with the band greatly, and yet he continues on being himself and trying very hard to finish his article. William never loses thought of his main goal nor does he ever stray from it. Even till the very end, William never tries to be fake. In my opinion this is very admirable .
ReplyDeleteRussel and his band never really have a good relationship together, yet they continue to sing and play together. They even stated that it wasn't for the money or fame, then why do they do it?
I agree that William staying true to himself and his beliefs showed his great character, and is something that remains relevant in today's society. I think it would have been the easier thing to do to just go along with what everyone was doing, and many people today tend to do this. It seems like we choose the way that doesn't require much effort, or that brings us the most immediate pleasure. I think it was admirable, as well, that he didn't give in to the temptations all around him. He was able to think of the consequences that would follow his choices and actions, which in the end kept him from making some mistakes. I am not sure that his childhood and upbringing were what kept him from experimenting. It seemed like she still tried to keep tabs on him, and keep control over what he did, though she wasn't there.
ReplyDeleteDo you think that if his mother wasn't so overbearing that he would have made different decisions?
I believe that this movie has a good point, in that good boys don’t always go bad when they get the chance. This movie show that you can go out and experience a style of life that is corruptive, but it doesn’t have lead to you changing who you are at heart. From me the rock star lifestyle would be hard to stay away from, unless the Jonas Brother were the rock stars I was hanging out with. With that aside, it does have a somewhat Disney message in that you need to stay true to yourself and your passions no matter what.
ReplyDeleteIf you had the chance to be a rock star would you change who you are?
It’s definitely true that William does stay true to himself throughout the movie and had pretty much the same personality in beginning and end. However, I find that a little hard believe. His mom is portrayed as being a bit suppressive and overly protective of their children. I would think that once he gets the chance to get out of the house, he would take the opportunity and go crazy! It’s kind of like what happened to Thelma once she gets the opportunity to get away from her suppressive husband. Then again, I also feel that the mom is two-faced. While she disapproves of several things that William and his sister do, she still allows them to do whatever they wanted to do, even if it sounds outrageous. Going with a bunch of rock stars on a bus trip definitely sounds out of the way for her but in the end she still gives William the permission to go. I think this was a main reason why we got the chance to admire William’s loyalty to himself. While his mom wants her children to be safe, she also wants them to be able to explore around them. This seems to contribute to William’s desire to be good because of his understanding that his mom means well.
ReplyDeleteDo you think Penny and Russell will ever get together again in the end?