RAD Valentine’s: Singles & Chasing Amy at Gorilla, Manchester
Tom Grieve, Cinema Editor
Are you in need of plans this February 14th? RAD Screenings take film fans back to the 90s this Valentine’s with an evening of alternative rom-coms as part of their annual series of double-bills at Gorilla.
First up is Cameron Crowe’s Singles, which sees the Almost Famous director depict that most 90s of rock scenes: grunge. Set in Seattle (where else?) the film depicts the comings and goings and romantic to-ings and fro-ings of a group of six twenty somethings who live in the same apartment building. Each has a connection to the burgeoning grunge scene, and Crowe, a former music writer, compiles a soundtrack stacked with the likes of Soundgarden, Pearl Jam and Mudhoney. Easter eggs for grunge-heads include appearances by iconic figures such as Chris Cornell and Eddie Vedder who pop in for cameos and performances.
Next, it’s Kevin Smith’s Chasing Amy. The film is atypical in the career of the director of Clerks, Mallrats and Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back in that it deals with (very) slightly more mature themes whilst remaining firmly planted in Smith’s multi-film ‘View Askewniverse’. Recurring characters Jay (Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (Smith) make cameos, but the film focuses upon New Jersey comic book author Holden McNeil (Ben Affleck) and his infatuation and subsequent romance with Alyssa Jones (Joey Lauren Adams). Drama arises from the fact that Alyssa identifies as a lesbian when Holden meets her, and, owing to his very 90s dude-ness, he struggles to come to terms with her sexual history.
