Film Review: Pearl Jam Twenty

Looking back on Cameron Crowe's movies, you stumble upon the shocking realization that he has only directed 6 non-documentary motion pictures (Say Anything, Singles, Jerry Maguire, Almost Famous, Vanilla Sky and Elizabethtown.) It was his his second film 'Singles' that introduced a lot of people to Pearl Jam (and many other fantastic bands on the soundtrack.)

But the story of Crowe's latest documentary starts with his own arrival in Seattle in 1989, as the alternative rock scene was in full swing. Over the rest of the United States bands like Bon Jovi, Motley Crue and Poison were hugely successful, but the seeds were being sewn in Seattle with bands like Mudhoney, Soundgarden and Green River and would lead to hugely popular bands like Alice In Chains, Nirvana and the subject of this film: Pearl Jam.

Green River would become Mother Love Bone, fronted by the incredibly talented Andy Wood, and that is where the films story begins. Tragedy would strike Mother Love Bone in March of 1990 when Wood died of a heroin overdose.

From the ashes of Mother Love Bone, Pearl Jam were formed. New frontman Eddie Vedder was brought in and things just exploded in terms of popularity, and the rest is history.

'Pearl Jam Twenty' is a great documentary for fans of the band, mixing archive footage with new interviews with all the members, as well as some collaborators such as Chris Cornell. The band are very honest, and the documentary deals with all the downs as well as the ups.

Vedder's struggle with the initial fame, the battle over ticket prices with Ticketmaster and the George W. Bush face mask incident are all dealt with very candidly, and the in the case of the latter two instances, with not much regret.

Also dealt with very candidly, and emotionally was the Roskilde tragedy. At the 2000 Roskilde Festival during Pearl Jam's set, the crowd surged forward, leaving 9 people dead. The entire incident left the band at a real crossroads, so much so that they refer to their career in terms of "pre-Roskilde" and "after".

There's also some good time given over about halfway through to look at the bands relationship with each other, and their rather Spinal Tap turnover when it comes to drummers. It's a great look into these relationships, though. The core of the band has remained solid since they released their first album back in 1991, and not many bands can say that.

Whilst Pearl Jam emerged in the midst of the grunge scene, it's hard to really pigeonhole them with that tag. They are very much influenced by classic rock acts from the 70s like The Who and Neil Young (both featured in 'Twenty') as well as some punkier influences. There's an archive interview with a quite bitter Kurt Cobain, when referring to PJ.

There was no doubting how many doors Cobain and Nirvana opened for bands like Pearl Jam, and while I like some of their music, I always liked Pearl Jam more (and bands like the aforementioned Alice In Chains and Soundgarden.)

It's hard to say whether non-fans will enjoy this, coming from someone who really likes the band. But from a documentary point of view, it's very well put together and it's just a fascinating story about how some guys went from playing tiny shows in bars to becoming the biggest band in America.

*****
I guess if you're not a fan of the band, you could knock a star from this. But I am, so it remains. A fascinating insight into the band, and the people in it. A fantastic and emotional snapshot of the last 20 years.