By Alexandra Edwards
In order to be successful, it seems that rock
documentaries need to feature three basic things: awesome music, copious
alcohol, and a topless girl. Atlanta music scene doc We Fun has all
three, and it's pretty great.
The movie profiles several Atlanta bands
who have become well-known in the wider indie world. The Black Lips,
Deerhunter and Mastodon are the big three — Atlanta's holy trinity, if you will
— but there are also notable appearances by and interviews with The Coathangers,
Mourdella The Babyshakes, King Khan and the Shrines, and many others.
The music is loud, the parties are crazy, and the city feels epic. It's
almost hard to believe these bands weren't even on the map a few years ago.
They support each ther nicely here, and it makes it feel like that cooperation
is part of the magic. There is, of course, the requisite amount of namedropping
and cross-referencing, mostly centering around the Black Lips: Deerhunter
frontman Bradford Cox talks about his first time seeing the band, and several
other subjects can be seeing wearing their merch throughout the movie.
The Black Lips themselves don't come across too wonderfully; there's a
lot of hurtful pranks and pointless in-fighting. More than anyone else, they
seem to typify how one interviewee aptly describes the Atlanta scene: too full
of dudes with Peter Pan syndrome. Bradford Cox, on the other hand, is an
excellent interview subject, and the extended footage of Deerhunter's live show
is one the best musical moments in the film. Mastadon are similarly terrific in
their interview, witty and charming, like the party guests you want to spend all
night talking to. Sadly, there's no footage of them playing live.
For
non-Atlantans, We Fun a great look into both the ups and downs of our
scene (though it may make it seem more coherent than it really is). And for us
locals, it's endless fun to pick out recognizable people and places: Record
Store Day 2008 in the old Criminal Records parking lot, for example, or New
Year's Eve at the Drunken Unicorn. You can't help but get a little thrill at
being able to say, "I was totally at that show."
