Tommy (1975)

Director:

Ken Russell

Writers:

Pete Townshend (album)
Pete Townshend (story)

Release Date:

26 March 1975 (UK)

Genre:

Drama | Fantasy | Musical

Tagline:

Your senses will never be the same

Plot:

A psychosomatically deaf, dumb and blind boy becomes a master pinball player and the object of a religious cult because of that.

Plot Keywords:

Pinball | Murder | Holiday Camp | Widow | Post War

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Oliver Reed	...	Frank Hobbs
Ann-Margret	...	Nora Walker
Roger Daltrey	...	Tommy Walker
Elton John	...	Local Lad
Eric Clapton	...	The Preacher
John Entwistle	...	Himself
Keith Moon	...	Uncle Ernie
Paul Nicholas	...	Cousin Kevin
Jack Nicholson	...	The Specialist
Robert Powell	...	Captain Walker
Pete Townshend	...	Himself
Tina Turner	...	The Acid Queen
Arthur Brown	...	The Priest
Victoria Russell	...	Sally Simpson
Ben Aris	...	Reverend Simpson

Also Known As:

The Who's Tommy
Tommy by 'The Who' (USA) (complete title)
Tommy: The Movie (USA) (promotional title)

Runtime:

111 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Quintaphonic (5 channel Dolby Stereo) | Dolby

Certification:

Italy:T | Japan:PG-12 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Iceland:L | Canada:G (Quebec) | Finland:K-15 (uncut) (2001) | New Zealand:R16 | Denmark:15 (DVD rating) | Finland:K-16 (cut) (1977) | Sweden:15 | USA:PG | UK:15 | Singapore:PG | Ireland:15 | UK:AA (original rating)

Filming Locations:

Brighton, East Sussex, England, UK

Company:

Robert Stigwood Organization (RSO)

Trivia:

The stage adaption of "The Who's Tommy" opened at the St. James Theater in New York on April 22, 1993, ran for 899 performances and was nominated for the 1993 Tony Awards for the Best Musical, Book and won for Best Score.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When we first see Keith Moon as himself playing the drums, there are no cymbals.

Quotes:

Nora Walker Hobbs: But what's it all worth? What's it all worth when my son is blind? He can't hear the music nor enjoy what I'm buying. His life is worthless, affecting mine. I'd pay any price to drive his plight from my mind!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

Soundtrack:

Extra, Extra, Extra

The Weird World of Ken Russell: Tommy

Tommy (1975) was the film adaptation of the Who's classic concept album Tommy. The film and the album are slightly different (the re-recorded songs pale to the real deal). But it was interesting to see avant-garde film maker Ken Russell re-imagine Tommy for the big screen. The movie has an all-star cast of eccentric and top stars (Oliver Reed, Ann-Margaret, Jack Nicholson) and pop stars (Tina Turner, Roger Daltry, Keith Moon, Eric Clapton, Elton John and The Who themselves, as a group on stage).

The music was changed and performed for the movie. Most of the dialog was sung (by all of the actors) and Ken Russell changed some of the story to fit the movie. If you're a fan of the album you might be disappointed by the movie. But it's worth a watch just to see Oliver Reed, Ann-Margaret (in total HOT mode) and the others as they make cameo appearances and guest spots. I was slight disappointed but I was pleased with the results. I just wished they used the original music whenever they could.

Recommended for Who and Ken Russell fans.