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Bad Reputation

Play trailer 2:04 Poster for Bad Reputation R Released Sep 28, 2018 1h 35m Documentary Music Play Trailer Watchlist
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78% Tomatometer 36 Reviews 83% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
A journey through Joan Jett's life and career, from her early years as founder of "The Runaways" and first collaborations with Kenny Laguna to her status as rock icon.
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Bad Reputation

Bad Reputation

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Critics Consensus

Bad Reputation offers fans and novices a solidly entertaining overview of Joan Jett's trailblazing career, albeit one that might leave some viewers craving a deeper look.

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Critics Reviews

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Simran Hans Observer (UK) Jett says she wants to offer her fans "a primal release". A pity, then, that this film about her is so repressed. Rated: 2/5 Oct 29, 2018 Full Review Kevin Maher Times (UK) The life and career of the groundbreaking rocker Joan Jett gets the dreary documentary treatment as the director Kevin Kerslake marches obediently through her career...with nothing less than wide-eyed adoration. Rated: 2/5 Oct 26, 2018 Full Review Leslie Felperin Guardian The big treat is seeing Jett herself talk and watching her still-strong bond with producer and best friend Kenny Laguna: two leather-clad old mates, constantly bickering but inseparable. Rated: 4/5 Oct 25, 2018 Full Review Andrew Galdi Movie Bitches It's good. May 15, 2020 Full Review Avaryl Halley Movie Bitches It was really good. May 15, 2020 Full Review Benjamin H. Smith Decider Bad Reputation is a rare look inside the life of an artist who's often guarded and protective about herself and her legacy. Jul 1, 2019 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member Great Documentary on the Queen of Doing It Her Way. Joan the one to say F U and keep going. I forgot about The Left Bank in Mt Vernon, NY until Kenny Lagunna mentioned it and Joan played there. I saw her there in 81 or 82 and The Ritz in NYC for New Years and a few other places. The 5'0" little ball of fury that is still going. Thanks for visiting the troops too and I suppose you're a vegan if not a vegetarian like myself. I love animals too!! Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/27/23 Full Review susan j She's just not that talented, and she's just not that good. She wasn't embraced more not because she's a woman but because her music just wasn't that appealing on any level and she chased fame with enormous tenacity. She seems like she's on something, with this monotone boring voice--completely self-protective so you learn nothing about her. Nothing. She's mediocre and a cypher clawing her way to the highest level she can get to, which is--as is apparent in this mediocre film--not nearly as high as she believes she deserves. It was pathetic watching her trying to convince herself and the world in the 1990s that she was The Original riot grrrl. She wasn't. She never truly had grit and honesty or a sense of social justice indignation or aspiration--as much as personal audacity, which is self-referential, and therefore, boring. This flick was boring because ultimately Joan Jett is boring. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member Joan Jett is a bad ass and this is a worthy representation of her career. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Audience Member Crackerjack documentary that blazes off the starting line and cramps up and staggers across the finish line Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review philip s Joan Jett is one of the most important figures in the modern history of rock music. From her days with The Runaways to her time with The Blackhearts, she has blazed a trail for countless musicians while also making remaining active in a variety of causes. Now thanks to Magnolia Pictures, Jett is getting the recognition that she has deserved for such a long time in the form of the new rock doc Bad Reputation. Released on DVD on Jan.1 via Magnolia Pictures, the 93-minute doc takes audiences through the life and ongoing career of the famed rocker, who proves in this program to be anything but the typical rock star. That story forms a strong foundation for the documentary, and will be discussed shortly. The bonus material included with the documentary gives audiences at least a little bit more to appreciate about the presentation. The documentary's average price point rounds out its most important elements. Each item is key in its own way to the whole of Bad Reputation. All things considered, they make Bad Reputation a very good documentary. Magnolia Pictures' new profile of Joan Jett, Bad Reputation, is a fitting tribute to the trailblazing musician/performer. That is proven in part through the story at the center of the documentary. The story is told in part from Jett herself and those closest to her, such as former and current band members, fellow celebrities and friends. Listening to Jett talk, audiences will appreciate her grounded nature. She does not have any sense of self-indulgence or ego. Rather, there is a certain sense of humility about her as she talks about The Runaways' acceptance overseas, The Blackhearts' place in the music industry and her own personal views on items, such as animal rights and feminism. Jett said of The Runaways' acceptance in Japan, "I thought it was exhilarating. They loved their music stars over there." The tone in her voice as she made those statements truly exhibits that humility. Comments from the likes of Iggy Pop, Jett's sister Ann Larkin and Green Day front man Billie Joe Armstrong prove even more, that said humility is real. Larkin notes in one segment that Jett's rebellion was not against her parents, but against society. In fact, Jett herself recalls warmly, how supportive her parents were of her from an early age, adding that they were the ones who gave Jett her first guitar and told her that she could do anything that they wanted to do in life. Pop notes that the era in which Jett's star was rising, "A lot of women wanted to rock. The problem was that they were always in a sidecar role. Joan Jett was nobody's sidecar." Armstrong adds to Pop's statements, noting that Jett's work as being "kick-ass songs." This emphasizes that determination from Jett to be noticed in what was then (and still is today) a very male-dominated industry. Between the comments from Jett's contemporaries, her family and friends, and those from Jett herself, the story that is presented proves to be one that will keep audiences fully engaged throughout the course of the program from start to end. Keeping that in mind, the story at the center of Bad Reputation is a very good story, and gives audiences more than enough reason to watch. Of course it is just one of the items that makes the recently released DVD worth viewing. The bonus material included with the DVD gives audiences a little more to appreciate. The bonus material featured with Bad Reputation is a pair of performances from Jett and company. One is a performance of her hit singles 'Bad Reputation' and 'Fresh Start' at the premiere of Bad Reputation in a semi-acoustic setting. The other features Jett and company performing the same two songs on the group's tour bus and at a live soundcheck. In essence audiences get a light glimpse of the same songs in different settings through that bonus material. There is also an extended piece of backstage footage of Jett and company at the 2015 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. That was the ceremony at which Jett was inducted into the famed institution. Some of the footage was included as part of the story at the center of Bad Reputation. Getting to see the footage in more depth creates even more appreciation for the overall presentation that is Bad Reputation. Given, it is not much when it comes to bonus material. There is no getting around this. However, considering all of the live material and "home movies" that are used to help tell the central story of Bad Reputation, this additional material proves to be entertaining, if not invaluable. To that end, the bonus material, while bare at its best, is still a positive in its own right to the whole of the doc. When it is considered along with the central story and all that said story offers audiences, the pairing of the two still gives audiences plenty of entertainment and engagement. The documentary's average price point makes that entertainment and engagement money well-spent. The average price point of Bad Reputation is $15.88. That price was determined using prices listed at Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Barnes & Noble Booksellers and Books-A-Million. Considering that the most expensive of the listed prices is $19.98 (at Walmart.com) and the least expensive is $13.99 (Best Buy and Amazon), that average price is actually a relatively solid mid-point. Add in the overall depth and breadth of Bad Reputation's story, and audiences will agree that a price of less than $20 for this deep story is not a bad price at all. Rather, they will agree that it is money well-spent on a documentary that generation of audiences will appreciate. When all of this is considered together, audiences will agree, again, that Bad Reputation is a doc whose reputation is in fact quite good. Magnolia Pictures' new Joan Jett profile Bad Reputation is a very good presentation on the famed musician/performer's life and career. It is a work that rock and roll aficionados across the board will appreciate. That is due in large part to the doc's central story, which presents Jett as quite the humble, down to earth figure, completely unlike so many rock stars past and present. The bonus material included with the DVD adds a little bit more for audiences to appreciate. The disc's average price point of less than $20 gives audiences even more reason to give this documentary a chance. Each item is important in its own right to the whole of Bad Reputation. All things considered, they give this program its own very good reputation. More information on Bad Reputation is available online now at: Website: http://www.badreputationfilm.com Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/badrepfilm Twitter: http://twitter.com/badrepfilm To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment reviews and news, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and "Like" it. Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil's Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Cool doc-movie! I will watching it using boxxy software, nice alternative to watch movies for free. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/17/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Movie Info

Synopsis A journey through Joan Jett's life and career, from her early years as founder of "The Runaways" and first collaborations with Kenny Laguna to her status as rock icon.
Director
Kevin Kerslake
Producer
Peter Afterman, Carianne Brinkman
Screenwriter
Joel Marcus
Distributor
Magnolia Pictures
Production Co
Blackheart Films, Submarine Entertainment
Rating
R (Sexual References|Language|Brief Nudity|Some Drug Use)
Genre
Documentary, Music
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 28, 2018, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 28, 2018
Box Office (Gross USA)
$148.5K
Runtime
1h 35m
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