Having seen and enjoyed Pride enormously, I was really looking forward to something of the same warm glow from Northern Soul. Although far from being a hardcore fan, there are some fantastic tracks that are among my favourites (few of which featured in the film). However, I once had a Lancastrian boyfriend who used to go to all-nighters at the Wigan Pavilion. He was an object of some curiosity at Oxford - where he was seen as a stand-out from the other guys, who were mostly afficionados of "Public School Rock" (Yes, Genesis, Pink Floyd et al). We used to sing soul songs to each other during our brief relationship.
I'd guess Northern Soul was a slightly less well funded film than Pride although costumes and hairdos made me almost nostalgic, while the factories and domestic interiors were every bit as dull and grubby as I remember them being. The story was very different - it had all the "coming of age" elements, betrayal by friends, (both features of Pride) plus a bit of violence, estrangement from parents, lots of drugs, and massive amounts of dancing. I would have enjoyed it more if (a) the hand held camera shots hadn't made me sick, (b) the female lead had been a better dancer (c) they had paid a little more attention to correct language - "soz" was not in use during the 70s (unless it's a Lancashire thing), and there were other phrases which grated. But I'm old, this film was not made for me.
The dancing, on the whole was great - and that strange male look - the skinny torsos above the wide kecks was extraordinarily evocative of the aforementioned boyfriend...
On the whole, pretty good - very gritty and realistic and a great way to enjoy Northern Soul music. It doesn't end quite as sentimentally as Pride - but then again, it was the story of individuals rather than a movement - and set in Lancashire (which I have little connection with) rather than S. Wales - which is heaving with distant cousins. And I wasn't involved with it, whereas I was with the miners. So my feelings about it are very much more stunted.
I'd guess Northern Soul was a slightly less well funded film than Pride although costumes and hairdos made me almost nostalgic, while the factories and domestic interiors were every bit as dull and grubby as I remember them being. The story was very different - it had all the "coming of age" elements, betrayal by friends, (both features of Pride) plus a bit of violence, estrangement from parents, lots of drugs, and massive amounts of dancing. I would have enjoyed it more if (a) the hand held camera shots hadn't made me sick, (b) the female lead had been a better dancer (c) they had paid a little more attention to correct language - "soz" was not in use during the 70s (unless it's a Lancashire thing), and there were other phrases which grated. But I'm old, this film was not made for me.
The dancing, on the whole was great - and that strange male look - the skinny torsos above the wide kecks was extraordinarily evocative of the aforementioned boyfriend...
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| Wonder if the ex-boyf ever danced like this? |
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