Pearl Jam Twenty

A must-see for Pearl Jam fans - and for folks keen on gleaning insights into the pressures that come with megastardom.

What makes Pearl Jam Twenty a little better than the average fan-friendly documentary is that Crowe focuses on the more significant parts of the Pearl Jam story: not how the group wrote "Alive," but how it's struggled with maintaining artistic credibility while selling millions.

Before viewers learn this venerable ensemble's story, much less see its members rock out on screen, they are subjected to Mr. Crowe's voice-over account of his own early discovery of the Seattle scene.

It's a shame that, after nearly 40 years of writing about rock, Cameron Crowe is receptive to the clichés of the genre.

The effort - by Vedder & Co., as well as Crowe - is heroic, if not quite persuasive. Legends aren't made of longevity alone, and while you wouldn't wish Kurt Cobain's pain on anyone, you can't help but feel this band survived well past its meaning.

Kurt Cobain, TicketMaster and the tragic concert in Roskilde, Denmark, are addressed through plentiful backstage footage. If only it was about something other than rockers almost irked they got famous.

Finding a pulse only in the band's late-reel performance of "Alive," a lusty passage that would've begun a pic intent on making a case for the group's greatness, "Twenty" simply counts the years from 1991 via sludgy backstage and onstage footage whose rarity can't forgive its inclusion. Crowe's critic mentor, the late Lester Bangs, would cringe.

This movie was a great film, I absolutely loved it. As a Pearl Jam fan, I think Cameron Crowe did an excellent job portraying the band. There were a lot of rare footage on there and he covered everything from the beginning of Mother Love Bone until now. I had shivers throughout the movie he chose some great performances to show. If you were a fan way back in the beginning but lost your touch with PJ, watch this movie and feelings will return.

This movie was absolutely fantastic. The best music documentary I've seen if not THE best documentary I've ever seen. Crowe did an amazing job of chronicling the band's success and explaining their motives and the way they see the fans, touring, album making, and music. It was a touching, sometimes shocking, emotional experience that barely let up any moment in entertainment and intrigue. I can't think of one thing wrong with it. If you're a fan, you'll be in awe. If you're not a fan, you'll be in love again. See it. You won't regret it.

I came into this film only knowing a couple of songs by Pearl Jam and now 3 years later they are definitely in my top 5 favourite bands of all time. I've seen the film probably 5 or more times now and its just so well done. Cameron Crowe was the perfect man for the job, and he did such a great job of creating such an interesting and compelling story over the span of 20 years. Granted, most of the film focused on the first year, that never bothered me. Definitely my favourite music-related documentary, and probably one of my favourite documentaries in general. I can definitely thank this documentary for truly introducing me to one of my favourite bands.

I really enjoyed this film, like I do with most of Cameron Crowe's I'm surprised by the mixed feedback from critics. I'm a fan of Pearl Jam without really knowing who they are (like I'd imagine most people are, besides the die-hard fans). Even I had heard about some of the topics brought up in the movie (Denmark and Ticketmaster), the film had this kind of introspective point of view that made the movie both compelling and inspiring.

I never really got into Pearl Jam, and other than a couple of hits their career pretty much passed me by, but this is compulsive viewing. A combination of interviews and captured footage make this a great documentary. Can't say I'm a fan of the band as a result, but they seem a nice enough bunch who have handled fame and fortune better than some in the industry. Worth watching by anyone with the slightest interest in rock.