Bang Bang Baby (2014) User Reviews

Odd but interesting

[jrneptune · 6/10 · 2 January 2017]

Stephanie (Jane Levy) wants to be a singer and gets a chance to perform for a talent show in New York City but her dad prevents her. She also idolizes an actor Bobby Shore (Justin Chatwin). An accident happens at the chemical plant in town and people start to mutate. Bobby Shore arrives and meets her. More crazy stuff happens after that but I don't want to give the story away.

The movie has a David Lynch feel to it and also has musical numbers which entertaining as well. I have to wonder if some of La La Land was not inspired by this movie but I doubt it.

Worth watching if you get the chance.

Wow, what a downer!

[Saw-it-on-Tubi · 4/10 · 23 January 2020]

When I heard this was an absurdist musical with mutants, I assumed it was going to be a comedy. It's not. This movie had some interesting ideas and played with what is real and fantasy, but the whole thing is just so miserable to watch. I don't know who I would possibly recommend this to.

weird and interesting

[SnoopyStyle · 5/10 · 13 January 2019]

It's 1963. Stepphy (Jane Levy) is a small town Canadian teen desperate to break into the music world. She records a song demo and sends it to New York City. She gets accepted into their contest. Her dad George Holiday (Peter Stormare) refuses to allow her to go. The local chemical plant accidentally releases a toxic gas. After a bad school dance with Fabian, she gets picked up by her singing idol Bobby Shore (Justin Chatwin) and his German friend Helmut. Fabian tells her that the chemicals may cause mutations.

This is a weird little Canadian indie musical. I like Jane Levy although she's not a top singing talent. Her singing is good show tune level. The old fashion crooning does get tiring which slows down the pacing. Filmmaker Jeffrey St. Jules seems to have quite a few ideas although they need to be sharpened into something with a bigger punch. I like the first half hour with its surreal touches but it descends into surreal dream chaos. It goes from cute weird to crazy melodramatic weird. It's not crazy enough to be outrageous but it is crazy enough to be non-traditional. It's weird and interesting. It's not cohesive enough as a story.

Not bad, not good, but very interesting and entertaining.

[TxMike · 2 March 2021]

This is a fun movie for Jane Levy fans. Otherwise I can see how others may get up and leave, like my wife did after about 25 minutes. We watched it on Amazon streaming movies.

Levy is Stepphy Holliday, a small town Canadian girl who aspires to singing and/or acting fame. She does her own singing for a number of songs and even though she is just a passable singer it sort of fits the time period, 1963, when many of the popular female singers were just "passable" but became popular. I was 18 in 1963, I remember it well.

Anyway the gimmick here is a local chemical plant has an operational upset, a purple haze permeates the area, locals begin to develop an assortment of abnormalities, usually a growth where one doesn't belong. After seeing the movie it is not clear to me why the purple haze was necessary, the story develops along an unusual path and when it was over I thought "so what!"

I like Jane Levy, she is very entertaining in her role, had it not been for her I would not have enjoyed this very quirky and unusual movie. My rating is "5".

Not so bad

[zarakh-37880 · 5/10 · 31 January 2021]

It's really interesting... Bt casting is not so good..hope for the best

WEIRD film that carries itself well but ends poorly

[digdog-785-717538 · 7/10 · 27 May 2017]

I liked very much Bang Bang Baby, until the very end, when all the sudden the film ruined it for me.

Bang Bang Baby is the story of Stephy, a young highschool girl in 1950s America; she dreams of becoming a famous singer and maybe filmstar too. Stephy has a nerdy friend who helps her record her demos, and he wants to kiss her too, but she is out of his league.

One day, a famous actor from Hollywood has a car breakdown in Stephy's town; they meet and he woos her with his charms and fortunes.

Ecstatic, Stephy pack her bags and gets ready to leave behind smalltown America for her newlyfound Hollywood fame.

The main appeal of this film is the *extremely* unusual filmography. Everything is filmed as if to make it appear that this is a dream, an onstage theater production, a fantasy musical, anything goes as long as it's weird and surrealist.

***SPOILERS BELOW***

I loved this film until 3/4 through. Pretty standard plot, standard characters, but when i'm ready for the change of scenery, when Stephy is due to move to Hollywood and face her dreams, the movie just says NO. The famous actor character is killed off, and Stephy loses with him all hope of completing her character arc.

I must assume that this was planned from the beginning, but this move left me very disappointed.

Anyway, the film is still worth watching. The filming is just superb, and there is something for everyone here, if you are into film making.

I do recommend Bang Bang Baby, while it might have a bad ending, it's still good.

My vote: 7/10

It's an absurdist comedy musical, unless it's not.

[kay_rock · 7/10 · 27 February 2018]

Before people get swamped by the reviews looking for the "intellectual message" (cringe) and the one person who thinks Steve Buscemi is John Waters (weep for humanity), it's just one of those hyper-stylized absurdist comedy musicals.

It's not the best of the genre, it's not the worst. It's well cast and has some great funny moments, but as others have said it could do with a slightly better ending.

It is not Lynchian, it is not like a John Waters movie. Especially not the latter. It's just a silly light strange comedy complete with mutants and young love and unmet dreams and some unfortunate but ridiculous deaths. And singing. And purple mist. That's all. It's not quite Little Shop of Horrors level good, but it's better than a night bingewatching the Bachelor.

Then again, every absurd thing in it could have just been a delusion after the incident in the car with Fabian. In which case it's a really sad film. Just a young girls metaphorical way of dealing with tragedy.

If you're looking for moral messages you should probably be doing some internal searching for meaning instead of watching movies.

Surprisingly Good

[taytayloverangel · 9/10 · 5 September 2021]

This movie was honestly way better than I originally thought it was going to be. I should say that I am a huge fan of Jane Levy, so my opinion is /slightly/ biased. However, I did find this movie very entertaining and not at all like I imagined it would be. The songs are actually pretty good and the acting is too. I can definitely see how this film wouldn't be for everyone, but if you're looking for something that's different, I'd definitely say give it a shot!

Loved it

[vampiresesamestreet · 7/10 · 14 July 2022]

I thought it was a great story. Fabian doesn't warn her about the chemical spill until after he's raped her. She runs into the woods, meets Bobby, and everything subtly begins to change. His mutation is especially interesting because it repeats the same words he used while Stephy was intoxicated and alternates between growling and a sweet, child like voice. He is also able to hide it easier than the others.

Bobby is able to escape their quarantine, lending to the dream like feeling. His disappearing act made a lot of sense because they're in the bedroom. She's attempting to hide her mutation, she has a flashback to the scene with Fabian, and he accuses her of trying to make him ugly. The fantasy shatters. Later Fabian says how he's given everything for their family - he doesn't believe he's a bad guy. When Stephy hears the baby crying that she doesn't want to be alone, the purple mist dissopates and she sees a beautiful baby. Throughout the movie she has to help her dad to bed after he's been drinking. He accuses her of trying to leave a dying man, but in their final scene together as she's preparing to take Sarah and go he walks himself.

She finally gets to perform before Mr. Avery. Though she doesn't get the result she hoped for in the beginning, her dream had changed. She's far away, she has her daughter, and she isn't lonely anymore.

What did I just watch?

[name99-92-545389 · 11 December 2017]

I watched this all the way to the end (which is saying a lot for me --- I rapidly stop watching movies that don't appeal to me) but I still have no idea what I saw. It is definitely fascinating, everything from the imagery to the country music soundtrack (weirdly mismatched to the visuals), to story line.

But what the heck is it about? Give up your dreams to support your parents? Be an awful spouse (then parent) because your life turned out unlucky? Don't ever hope because the hopes won't come true? Suffer through the pain because (five years later) it does eventually get better?

I have no idea what the intellectual message was (or even what the story ultimately was). Mainly I just picked up on the tone, which was pretty much unadulterated downer. Comedy this is not. But, like I said, strange enough that I just kept watching all the way to the end.

I MAKE DREAMS, NOT NIGHTMARES

[nogodnomasters · 7/10 · 19 December 2018]

Stephanie (Jane Levy) wants to be a singer in NYC. She worships teen idol Bobby Shore. When the chemical plant has a mishap, her life with Bobby becomes a reality for her, yet she also has nightmares.

This is an odd well performed film, however the dark comedy and message about a chemical induced reality may slip by most viewers. It is like watching "Eraserhead" but it was easier to understand.

I found the film mildly entertaining, but it seemed long at 89 minutes as the plot stagnates.

Guide: 2 F-bombs. Implied sex. No nudity. Musical Numbers

Not bad

[siddiquaa-90434 · 6/10 · 30 January 2021]

Interesting enough. Cast are so good..acting is much better..enjoy it

You're from Can- ah-dah, not you are ? SPOILERS ABOUND !

[ratherbebocce · 10/10 · 21 May 2017]

So what can you do with a million dollars ? ( Is that a million Candian, or U.S. ? And which one is worth more ?) Why, you can make a movie, Red ! Green light that project, and while you're at it make it a musical. I disagree with the other reviewer about this having a Lynchian feel to it. I think it has more of a Steve Buscemi feel. Isn't he the one who made all those nutty movies with Divine and Ricki Lake in them ? And speaking of Steve B. I've become a bit of a Peter Stormare fan ever since I saw Fargo 46 times. OK, so can I rec this film ? Well, if you're a 58 yr. old recovering alcoholic procrastinating doing the house cleaning in your 90 + yr.old parents house on a Sunday morning and you've seen everything else on HBO ten times or more then yes, absolutely watch this inspiring musical comedy ( Not that that is this reviewers situation....I know a guy who's living in a situation like that. Really. )