‘The Dirt’ captures Mötley Crüe through humor and heart
Mötley Crüe are peak ’80s glam metal with their tight pants and loose morals in turn fulfilling that epitome of sex, drugs and rock ’n’ roll. The band put it all out there throughout their career and then documented their wild experiences in their 2001 autobiography penned with Neil Strauss, The Dirt: Confessions Of The World’s Most Notorious Rock Band.
Nearly 18 years later, Netflix is bringing us the highly anticipated film adaptation, The Dirt. Chronicling the band’s rise and tumultuous path to stardom, the flick does so with grace. It goes all-in, and while there’s plenty of what you’d expect (topless women, excessive drug use and blacked-out antics) the character development manages to hit both ends of the spectrum, producing heart-tugging and side-busting interactions.
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The real-life rock stars are brought to life by Machine Gun Kelly (aka Colson Baker, as he is billed), Douglas Booth, Iwan Rheon and Daniel Webber as Tommy Lee, Nikki Sixx, Mick Mars and Vince Neil, respectively.
MGK brought the film to the big screen in his hometown of Cleveland, marking the first city to see it outside of the official Los Angeles-based premiere earlier this week. The pride that filled the room was palpable, and the feeling was mutual as the musician/actor basked in the moment of sharing his first true starring movie role.
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He truly impressed as Lee, nailing that stick twirl and offering up much of the film’s comedic relief. From assuring his sister her leopard pants look better on him to sprinting away from the cops in a speedo during a debaucherous hotel scene, he hit all the hilarious moments on the head.
The humor wasn’t unexpected: he film was helmed by director Jeff Tremaine who’s best known for his work with the Jackass films. However, MGK wasn’t the only one providing laughs as Rheon’s portrayal of Mars demonstrated he was the most level-headed of the bunch. His deadpan expressions tried to diffuse many of the situations only to be dragged through the mud with the rest of them in the end.
Despite the humor, the film kept a steady pace through the more intense moments. From Sixx’s near-death overdose to Neil’s life-altering car accident (which killed Nicholas “Razzle” Dingley, the drummer for Hanoi Rocks) and loss of his daughter, each actor’s performance had the audience stupefied.
Each member worked through their own plethora of issues from dysfunctional families, divorces and chronic illness. And in true Crüe fashion, they often got in each other’s faces, fighting and even parting ways with Neil at one point. But what the film captured was that despite all of the group’s personal issues, they came together in the end, proving you don’t need to be related by blood to be a family.
The Dirt is available on Netflix now, and you can view the trailer below.
