Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

David Essex takes the viewer on a trip around picturesque Isle of Wight locations, including Shanklin beach, Sandown High School, the bridge over the river round the back of Sandown Waterworks, Pontins Little Canada Holiday Camp. Shanklin Theatre, and outside the Rex at Ventnor which isn't there any more.Big excitement down here on the Isle of Wight back in 1970 when this was going on, actually. I'd recently left school, but my Dad still taught there and it was his classroom which was used as the location (later to become the music room, where my daughter did her music A level). I helped at lunchtime at Shanklin Liberal Club, where the cast and crew were fed and watered at lunchtime during the Shanklin Theatre filming (no-one famous, though!). And assorted school friends pop up as extras - hi there, Sudsy and Hoof! So the local connection means I always regard this movie with fondness, but I also like it for two other reasons. One it is an atmospheric evocation of an era important to me personally and, two, it showed Ringo that there was life after The Beatles.

Set in a plausibly dreary and defiantly anti-nostalgic late 50's era Britian, this grimly serious kitchen sink drama relates the turbulent up and down tale of one Jim MacLaine (superbly played by David Essex of "Rock On" fame), a discontent working class bloke who wants to be a rock star so he can successfully transcend the dismally unrewarding banality of plain old normal bourgeoisie existence and live a free, spontaneous, not attached to any heavy responsibility life. Jim drops out of school and moves out of his mother's house. He winds up going nowhere slowly, selling beach chairs on the arid shore in order to scrape by, until a shrewd smoothie busboy (Ringo Starr in a surprisingly excellent performance) takes the shy, naive Jim under his wing and teaches the heretofore sweet, guileless lad the fine art of picking up girls and gypping patrons at the local carnival of their spare change. Pretty soon Jim degenerates into a cold, heartless womanizing cad who's incapable of commitment and, as long as he refuses to settle down, just a few steps away from the fame he seeks.Loosely based on John Lennon's actual early exploits, with an outstanding golden oldies soundtrack and a rough, seedy, marvelously unglamorous and unromanticized depiction of the 50's, "That'll Be the Day" offers an engrossingly seamy and minutely detailed evocation of drab blue collar life, chiefly centering on the pertinent role rock music plays in serving as an outlet for overcoming the horrid ordinariness of said average lifestyle. Claude Whatham's astutely observant direction delivers a striking wealth of piquant incidental touches -- the ghastly shabbiness of Jim's cheap apartment, the faulty, out-of-tune speakers at a rundown dance hall, the grungy sleaziness of the fairground Jim works at, an incredibly cheerless wedding reception -- which in turn brings a splendidly gritty, lived-in conviction to Ray Connelly's meticulous, unsparingly downbeat script. Moreover, the acting is uniformly top-notch (Essex's finely underplayed characterization is especially strong), with commendable work turned in by Rosemary Leach as Jim's doting, concerned mother, James Booth as Jim's restless and unreliable absentee deadbeat dad, and Billy Fury as hotshot lounge singer extraordinaire Stormy Tempest. A sterling cinematic testament to rock music's undying allure and magical ability to create hope in an otherwise bleak and thankless world.

A very enjoyable piece of good ol' British cinema at it's best with a mighty fine cast, story and soundtrack.David Essex in his first big screen role portrays delinquent Jim Maclaine who holds a deep passion for Rock 'n' Roll music and a care-free lifestyle in 1950's England. After he drops out of school and heads to the seaside he eventually ends up working in a holiday camp where he experiences the many temptations on offer to him including girls...and more girls...as well as soaking up the sounds of the time.Jim, along with his friend Mike (Ringo Starr), heads for all the fun of the Fair - literally. Unfortunately, things go somewhat awry for Mike as he is badly beaten-up by some local thugs and Jim can only watch helplessly. Soon after, the boss of the Fairground offers Jim the prestige position of working one of the main ride attractions of the fair, but a meeting with old school friend Terry (Robert Lindsay) and an encounter with a young Mother suddenly make Jim question his current lifestyle.Things are about to change for Jim as the prospect of family life beckons, but his passion for music still shines bright within him and he is now faced with a terrible dilemma in his life.The end of the 1950's sets the scene beautifully for this film's thoroughly insightful sequel not to be missed, which is a very rare example of a second movie being just as good, if not better, than the original.Do not miss the continuing story of Jim Maclaine in "Stardust"...'Look what they've done to the Rock 'n' Roll clown...'

ITV have just shown the Jim Maclaine(David Essex) films of which this is the first and Stardust is the second and as an avid supporter and fan of sixties and seventies British cinema i thought i had to check it out.It doesn't disappoint with its gritty evocation of a fifties childhood with a lack of a father figure. Jim then turns to the Rock and Roll world when he buys a guitar from a pawn shop at the end. His rise and fall is taken up in Stardust with Adam Faith taking the Ringo Starr role as Mike.Great, forgotten film with superior performances from Essex and Ringo Starr and a good cameo from Keith Moon and Billy Fury.