NOWHERE BOY
4 out of 5 stars


i guess my queue right now is in biopic mode, since i ended up watching the early years of john lennon played brilliantly by aaron johnson AKA kickass! really interesting look at john lennon circa 15 years old, and this one is just fabu... ;)

nowhere boy is john lennon circa when he was 15. we learn that he is being raised by his aunt mimi (kristen scott thomas- AWESOME job!) and uncle george in liverpool, and he’s a wild child. he cuts class, smokes a ton, is constantly getting expelled, rides buses on the roof (LOL!), writes poetry and draws while in class, and even brings a nuddie magazine to school. he’s extremely charming and very talented musically, but his true talents as a musician don’t shine until he learns at his uncle’s funeral, that his mother julia is still alive and literally living around the corner from his home. they began to spend more and more time together, and julia teaches john about rock n’ roll and also how to play the banjo. (which he ultimately transfers his skills to guitar) aunt mimi disapproves this, and this creates conflict between the two sisters as well as john. while family drama is brewing at home, john decides he’s going to form a band with his school chums, and of course, along the way, he meets a young lad named paul mccartney who teaches him how to play guitar. then, along the way again, he meets another young lad named george harrison, who wants to join his band...

i actually thought the acting, the story of lennon’s early years, and his relationships with both mother and aunt were well done all around! as screwed up as he was, he loved both his mother and his aunt mimi sooooo much, and it’s interesting to see how both of them impacted john as a person AND musician. the brits really did a great job with this one, and i really liked how we see john lennon, the young lad/pre-beatle. i don’t think there’s much stuff shed on the early years, so i appreciated this one, as you can tell... ;)