I watched this movie twice in the cinema and enjoyed it very much. Not a strange thing because I'm totally into the music of that period and the bands from Manchester pictured in the movie. Now I have watched it at home and feel slightly disappointed by it. Some lesser aspects of this film were made clear to me. The whole film is very fragmented and an almost 15 years are tried to put into one story. And that story handles punk, new wave, indie, baggy and rave, all different subcultures.Then there's the main character Tony Wilson (well acted by Steve Coogan) who tells us that this movie "Is not about Tony Wilson". Well the movie is in fact about Tony Wilson and not about the music, the musicians or the scene. Of course Wilson played a pivotal role in creating the Manchester scene with his Factory label and the Hacienda club. But think about this: of the six legendary bands that came out of Manchester in the period of '75-'95 only two (Joy Division/New Order and the Happy Mondays) were on the Factory label. Oke, he was too late for the Buzzc***s and too early for Oasis but he rejected the Smiths and he hated the Stone Roses. In fact these two bands who were the leading groups of their time are only mentioned once or shown for just a split second. The reason of course is that this film is about Tony Wilson and we must not get under the impression that this almost god missed two legendary bands for the label he ruined personally. But 24 Hour Party People is not completely a glorification of Mr. Wilson. He is often portrayed as a complete t**t which give some relieve and humor during the "I have been such an important person for the development of music in my period" scenes. And there are the scenes when you see Tony as a reporter for Granada Television. These scenes are relatively funny but they also draw you away from the real story.So what is still good about 24 Hour Party People? Michael Winterbottom manages to show the zeitgeist of a very interesting period in rock and dance music. His film is very hip and very funny, but also sad. Especially when you see the decline of a very talented man like Martin Hannett. Of course the suicide of Ian Curtis is also a very sad moment but unless you have some knowledge of Joy Division (which most viewers will have I assume) you are left wandering why the hell this guy hangs himself. And that is probably the main problem that Winterbottom didn't solve. Unless you followed the music scene during these years or you have read about it the story is hard to follow. And you wonder what was so unique about this period in rock music and about the main characters pictured here (Curtis, Hannett, Ryder). Winterbottom managed to get a great ensemble of actors together here. Sean Harris gives the best portrait of Ian Curtis I have seen so far and Andy Serkis is great as Martin Hannett. It is my opinion that Danny Cunningham is less convincing as Shaun Ryder, but he is probably impossible to play.So in my own chair and with a partner without knowledge of the music scene in Manchester the flaws in this movie were clear. But still the hipness, humor and acting skills attracts.

So, the history is there, in a sort of hazy blotch of spurtches (those are real words, look them up), but of course it's told to us by one person, Tony Wilson, who everyone in the film repeatedly says is a c*nt, and potentially the worst kind, a charming c*nt that appears to know everything, is married multiple times to women he constantly cheats on, and appears to fail at everything except failure (he's apparently married to a former Miss UK as of the film's making). His specialty is talking out of his ass and spotting the next big thing in music. So, we're treated to the Sex Pistols, we're treated to Joy Division and New Order, the Happy Mondays, bands the kids don't know they know unless they know they need to. It's told tongue-and-cheek, and you know it must embrace the spirit of it because there are multiple cameos by the people who were a part of it. It also comes with a light of mockumentary about it, as though it needs to make fun of itself to keep you off about whether this or that happened that way or if it happened at all (and sometimes they will straight up tell you it didn't). A little too self-aware to be a masterpiece, but it's revetting and loads of fun to watch, all the same.

I was mislead by the trailers of '24 Hour Party People' have been very misleading. I thought it would be another 'Trainspotting' type movie about party animals. However, it's something different, something better. Though many have compared it to the likes of 'Studio 54' (Lord knows why), '24 Hour Party People' is a far better made and more effective film. Based on a true story, it takes place during the time when punk rock was subsiding and new kinds of music were born in England. Shot with a digital camera, in documentary style with some use of live footage and narrated by Tony Wilson, (who leads a double life as a TV reporter and music producer), Michael Winterbottom takes us into the rave culture in Manchester, that of sex, drugs and rock and roll. We see it all from Wilson's point of view and we are amused by the layers of his character. Coogan breathes life into Tony Wilson and brings an excellent humour in his portrayal. Paddy Considine and Shirley Henderson stand out too. Pretty much all the performances appear authentic. Watch out for cameos by Andy Serkis, Simon Pegg and Marsha Thomason and by real bandmembers. The portrayal of the Manchester culture, the scenes inside the club and the bands look very real. Winterbottom infuses loads of energy and craze to 'seduce' the viewer. He cleverly injects dry humour which only supports that this is more than just a documentary-like movie. The soundtrack is a must-have and for those who love movies about music, this is a must see.

This was basically thrown away by MGM, to audiences which had to find it themselves. Which is somewhat in keeping with a record label whose products had to be sought out, then correctly deciphered (Factory products weren't labeled, as such). Only here, all the promotional materials were limp and half-hearted (poster, DVD box, marketing, etc). Never hand the marketing of counterculture to the timid drones who work at a mass-market studio like MGM.This assembles the Factory/Joy Division/Happy Mondays/Manchester story for those who came late to the game, or were geographically out of the picture. Tony Wilson (Steve Coogan) acts as historian, tour guide, and chronicler of the Manchester scene that produced the hideously over-valued and mythologized Joy Division. The technique is to acknowledge that we're watching a movie now and again which spares it from a typical plot line, and emotional arc. Plot-schmott, just enjoy yourself watching a maverick music guru getting dragged down by a nightclub that's become an anchor around his neck. The movie has gotten way off track by the time Tony is taking credit for rave culture which has zero to do with the the initial impetus of putting together a label for a bunch of angry, anti-social, post-punk bands. Rave culture is about as angry as numbing yourself with drugs to look at pretty colors; and disappearing into your own baby-boomer-offspring selfishness ethos. The original Factory acts would have been punching these big babies.Still I'd trade anything to live in a world of thirty billion Tony Wilsons (as remade here). He's always either smart, or funny, except when it comes to business. And the movie is infinitely better and more enjoyable than the similar 'Studio 54,' with Mike Myers as Steve Rubell. As everyone has noted it runs too long, and loses steam.