Review: Don't Stop Believin': Everyman's Journey
PLOT: What happens when an Seventies/Eighties rock band is looking for a new lead singer? For the hit-makers Journey once fronted by Steve Perry, the answer was found on YouTube. It was then that a young man from the Philippines was plucked from obscurity and found himself on tour with the popular retro act.
REVIEW:
As ridiculously difficult as it may be to make it in the music business, it seems we are hearing a whole lot about overnight sensations or YouTube âcelebrities.â DONâT STOP BELIEVINâ: AN EVERYMANâS JOURNEY may be about that very same thing, yet in bringing the audience along for the ride we see a far more personal exploration of a young singer thrust into the limelight.
When we first meet Arnel Pineda he is taking a tour of a local elementary school in his home town of Manila. While getting a picture taken with one of the teachers, she asks what the name of his band is, he replies with Journey. Young or old, possibly every living soul has heard of this super group from the 70âs and 80âs. According to the film their hit song âDonât Stop Believingâ is probably being played somewhere on the radio station as you read this. However, the bandâs lead singer Steve Perry left the band after he underwent a hip replacement surgery in 1997 and couldnât tour with the band for that period of time. He and his former band mates have since gone their separate ways.
As Diaz follows Pineda as well as the rest of the band including Schon, Ross Valory, Jonathon Cain and Deen Castronovo, we get a sense that he helped reinvigorate the musicians. The concert footage presented is highly energetic and this is in part thanks to Arnelâs unfiltered energy. At one point after their first show he is actually asked to bring it down a bit because Journey is not âthat kind of bandâ or something along those lines. As we follow the tour they seem to connect not only with each other but as well with the thousands of screaming fans singing along. This is also where DONâT STOP BELIEVIN feels the most alive. Itâs all about the music.
The only down side here is that occasionally the film feels a little too in love with itself to explore any of the negative side effects. The lack of tension drags a bit as the biggest challenges presented seem a little too calculated. However you canât really fault the filmmaker for making this a feel good flick especially since the music itself is fueled by pure Eighties enthusiasm. DONâT STOP BELIEVINâ: EVERYMANâS JOURNEY is a fun and occasionally inspiring look at a man given the chance to live his dreams that you can sing along with.
Source: | JoBlo.com |
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