Absolute Beginners

PG-13

Released Apr 18, 1986

1h 47m

Musical

Romance

List

70%

Tomatometer

10 Reviews

38%

Audience Score

2,500+ Ratings

Colin (Eddie O'Connell), an aspiring young British photographer and jazz aficionado, falls for the beautiful Crepe Suzette (Patsy Kensit), a model on the rise. When she leaves him to pursue her dreams of fame, Colin lands under the wing of Vendice Partners (David Bowie), a suave advertising executive, and begins his own climb toward success. As Colin and Suzette get caught up in the promotion of youth culture, they brush up against the era's social issues, including racism.

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

A lively but stinker of a film that features to no avail one of David Bowie's better songs called Absolute Beginnings.

Rated: C

Jul 24, 2023

Full Review

Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

“Absolute Beginners” ranks as one of David Bowie’s greatest songs, and it’s just a shame the movie of the same name doesn’t come close to matching its glory.

Rated: 2/4

May 24, 2023

Full Review

Pat Padua

Spectrum Culture

A spectacular failure.

Aug 31, 2018

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Though the film is flawed, it's still underrated as an exploration of a crucial era of London's pop culture, and the eccentric cast (including David Bowie) adds a lot of color.

Rated: B

Jul 29, 2007

Full Review

Cole Smithey

ColeSmithey.com

Rated: 3/5

Oct 10, 2005

Full Review

Carol Cling

Las Vegas Review-Journal

Rated: 3/5

Nov 7, 2003

Full Review

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Donald C

This is a hidden gem that didn't get nearly enough attention when it came out. Treat yourself to it, then buy the soundtrack!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/18/23

Full Review

chris m

Watched it to compare it to the book, which I had just read. In that context, I enjoyed it, but don't think it would've held my interest otherwise.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

I saw this in my late teens when it came out and more recently and for me it's a really good British film. It is probably of its time - the mid 80s - but I liked that time. Ok it's a bit stylised but so is the book so for me it's fair true to the source.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Does this have an original plot and strong acting from everyone concerned? No. How did Patsy Kensit come to be known as an actess? She is utterly awful. Why is Bowie on the cover? He is only in it for about 5 or ten minutes all up and has little bearing on the story line. Plus he has a terrible American accent. His only saving grace is an amazing musical number. Look it up on You Tube and save yourself some time! How did this rate higher than Labyrinth on the tomato scale? Professional critics think it's a better movie, but Labyrinth has a cult following with its audience. Is it worth seeing? No.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

02/23/23

Full Review

Audience Member

(** 1/2): [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon13.gif[/img]

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/18/23

Full Review

Audience Member

El director de video-clips Julien Temple, nos presenta un musical ubicado en la Inglaterra de finales de los 50 que se aproxima a la rebeldía juvenil de la época. Los personajes son más que superficiales y la película trata de hacer algo más que un homenaje estilizado: el resultado es irregular. A veces insoportable, a veces genial, "Absolute Beginners" es una cinta de amores y de odios.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/25/23

Full Review

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Julien Temple

Director

Eddie O'Connell

Colin, Photographer

Patsy Kensit-Healy

Suzette

David Bowie

Vendice Partners

James Fox

Henley of Mayfair, Dressmaker to the Queen

Ray Davies

Arthur, Colin's Dad

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Synopsis

Colin (Eddie O'Connell), an aspiring young British photographer and jazz aficionado, falls for the beautiful Crepe Suzette (Patsy Kensit), a model on the rise. When she leaves him to pursue her dreams of fame, Colin lands under the wing of Vendice Partners (David Bowie), a suave advertising executive, and begins his own climb toward success. As Colin and Suzette get caught up in the promotion of youth culture, they brush up against the era's social issues, including racism.

Director: Julien Temple
Producer: Chris Brown, Stephen Woolley
Screenwriter: Richard Burridge, Terry Johnson, Colin MacInnes, Don MacPherson
Distributor: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Home Box Office (HBO) [us]
Production Co: Goldcrest Films International
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Musical, Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 18, 1986, Original
Release Date (DVD): Apr 15, 2003
Box Office (Gross USA): $278.9K
Runtime: 1h 47m
Sound Mix: Dolby, Magnetic Stereo 6 Track, Surround
Aspect Ratio: 35mm, Scope (2.35:1)