Warning: include() [function.include]: open_basedir restriction in effect. File(/home/buffybot/public_html/kate/header.html) is not within the allowed path(s): (/home/katehuds:/usr/lib/php:/usr/local/lib/php:/tmp) in /home/katehuds/public_html/kate/films/almostfamous.php on line 1

Warning: include(/home/buffybot/public_html/kate/header.html) [function.include]: failed to open stream: Operation not permitted in /home/katehuds/public_html/kate/films/almostfamous.php on line 1

Warning: include() [function.include]: Failed opening '/home/buffybot/public_html/kate/header.html' for inclusion (include_path='.:/usr/lib/php:/usr/local/lib/php') in /home/katehuds/public_html/kate/films/almostfamous.php on line 1
Kate > Films

ALMOST FAMOUS (2000)
Experience it. Enjoy it. Just don't fall for it.

Almost Famous tells the story of 15 year old William Miller, an aspiring rock journalist hired by Rolling Stone magazine to write about up and coming rock band Stillwater, while accompanying them on tour. Throughout the journey he meets a number of different people, including the charismatic and free-spirited 'band-aide' Penny Lane...

Kate plays Penny Lane/Lady Goodman

GENERAL INFORMATION
Directed by: Cameron Crowe
Written by: Cameron Crowe
Co-stars: Billy Crudup as Russell Hammond, Patrick Fugit as William Miller, Frances McDormand as Elaine Miller, Jason Lee as Jeff Bebe, John Fedevich as Ed Vallencourt, Mark Kozelek as Larry Fellows, Noah Taylor as Dick Roswell, Fairuza Balk as Saphire Loveson, Anna Paquin as Polexia Aphrodisia, Philip Seymour Hoffman as Lester Bangs, Zooey Deschanel as Anita Miller
Genre: Drama, Comedy, Music
Filming: Filmed in San Diego California and New York, USA from 24th May 1999 to 6th October 1999
Budget: $60m
Box Office: US - $32,522,352; UK - Ł1,229,382. Grossed $2,314,646 in it's opening weekend in the USA showing on 131 screens and Ł511,896 in the UK on 226 screens.
Runtime: 122mins / 2hr 2mins
Released: US- 13th September 2000; UK- 26th January 2001; Spain- 16th February 2001; Australia- 22nd February 2001; France- 2st March 2001
Official site: -

MEDIA
Trailers: Videos at KHH
Clips: Videos at KHH
Gallery: at KHH
Quotes: at KHH

full gallery...

KATE SAYS...
» "He couldn’t picture me in the role, even though I kept on telling him I could see myself as Penny Lane. He finally allowed me to audition, but it was a long process. It was a catch-22. I was not known. Would he take the risk? I feel extremely blessed that Cameron took a chance on me. I was 19 when I shot that film, and films do not come along very often for girls of that age."
» "If I’d sucked in that movie it would have been the end of everything for me, just because of what I come from. But Cameron Crowe had confidence in me and gave me the confidence to understand my ability. I will forever thank him for that.”
» "My mother found out before I did and she called me, freaking out, and I said,'would you tell me what is it?' She said,'did you know that it's your face, poster face?' I was like,'what?' She said, "You are the poster of the face" and I said, "You mean, my face is on the poster?" And she said, "Yeah, it's just you!" I go, "Are you serious?" I mean, it was real exciting because it's Cameron Crowe, and to me, I was going, "It's Cameron Crowe, what an amazing man, and I can't believe that he did that." [on the poster]
» "I just wanted to be in Cameron's movie, as anything, even an extra. I knew I could do it. Then I had the opportunity to read the script, and I cried at least 5 times. I knew, having read Penny Lane, that I could give this to Cameron and make it special for him."
» "I loved her fire and strength. I loved the fact that she was vulnerable yet so masked and a little lost." [on Penny]
» "We totally knew that what we were doing was something incredible. I knew it was when I read the script. I cried five times when I read the script in his office for the first time … it was so beautiful."
» "Penny Lane is a real person, but she's a composite of characters, different women he's met along his way. I did a lot of research too. We took all of that and combined it into one. One big thing was that in most all of these women there's a such a sadness to them. It's in their eyes, something that is very lost, and they hide it very well. If you're researching them, you pick up on it. If you're watching for something like that, you pick up on it. If you're just talking to them, they seem like the most fun people in the world."
» "It's the kind of movie -- I've seen it twice now -- that each time people are going to see a little more, because the characters are really layered and rich."
» "When I saw the movie, I was in such shock. The movie is not about a rock-and-roll band. That's the backdrop. It's a love story. It's a love triangle; from Billy's character to Patrick's character to mine. I think the message, which is very profound, is, at the end of day, what do you have? Your relationships with the people you love."
» "There is an innocence to Penny even though she's seen and done a lot. But she does have a sense that she's got something special, that she can make it a party just by walking into a room."
» "It changed my whole career. It changed everything for me. It was such a great learning experience. And I just feel so honored that I got to be in my favorite Cameron Crowe film."

REVIEWS
Roger Ebert: "Kate Hudson has one scene so well-acted, it takes her character to another level. William tells her, "He sold you to Humble Pie for 50 bucks and a case of beer." Watch the silence, the brave smile, the tear and the precise spin she puts on the words, "What kind of beer?" It's not an easy laugh. It's a whole world of insight."
EFilmCritic.com: "Equally as strong is the luminous Kate Hudson (200 Cigarettes). As Penny Lane, she shows us a lot; her confidence and bravado is always laced with innocence, and her performance is simply a joy to behold."
JoBlo.com: "And where the heck did Kate Hudson come from? Brought into this world by actress Goldie Hawn, known primarily for her pranky roles in easy comedies, Hudson takes on this lead role with the edge of a pro, and the charisma of a newfound sensation."
:
ReelViews.net: "...showed more than the mixture of vulnerability, innocence, and luminescence which comprised her career to that point. As Penny Lane, she blossomed."

AWARDS & NOMINATIONS
Oscars [2001] - Best Supporting Actress (won)
American Comedy Awards [2001] - Funniest Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture (nominated)
BAFTAs [2001] - Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role (nominated)
Blockbuster Entertainment Awards [2001] - Favorite Female Newcomer (won)
Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards [2001] - Breakthrough Artist (won)
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards [2001] - Best Supporting Actress (nominated)
Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards - Best Supporting Actress (won)
Florida Film Critics Circle Awards [2001] - Newcomer of the Year (won)
Golden Globes [2001] - Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture (won)
Kansas City Film Critics Circle Awards [2001] - Best Supporting Actress (won)
Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards [2001] - Best Supporting Actress (won)
MTV Movie Awards [2001] - Best Dressed (nominated)
MTV Movie Awards [2001] - Best Female Performance (nominated)
Online Film Critics Society Awards [2001] - Best Ensemble Cast Performance (won)
Online Film Critics Society Awards [2001] - Best Supporting Actress (won)
Online Film Critics Society Awards [2001] - Best Cinematic Debut/Breakthrough (nominated)
Satellite Awards [2001] - Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role, Comedy or Musical (won)
Screen Actors Guild Awards [2001] - Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role (nominated)
Screen Actors Guild Awards [2001] - Outstanding Performance by the Cast of a Theatrical Motion Picture (nominated)

TRIVIA
{1} Working titles included 'Something Real', 'Stillwater' and 'The Uncool'.
{2} Brad Pitt and Sarah Polley were originally cast as Russell and Penny.
{3} Penny asks William if he'd like to go to Morocco with her. He says, "Yes... ask me again." According to Cameron Crowe, "ask me again" was Patrick Fugit stepping out of character and asking Kate to repeat her lines for another take. But Crowe like the take as-is and kept it in the final cut.
{4} Kate was originally cast as William's sister.
{5} Kirsten Dunst was nearly cast as Penny Lane instead of Kate. Cameron Crowe choose Kate because he felt she seemed more like a "free spirit" but Crowe promised Kirsten he would cast her in a future film of his ... and did so in Elizabethtown (2005).
{6} The scene where Penny Lane nearly dies of a drug overdose is a tribute to a similar scene in the film The The Apartment (1960), director Cameron Crowe's favorite film, in which Shirley McLaine nearly dies from taking too many sleeping pills.
{7} The character of Penny Lane is based on several women Crowe met at the time depicted, but principally Bebe Buell.
{8} Continuity error - When William is sitting in the bathtub, Penny Lane comes in to use the bathroom. Startled, William knocks his notes off the edge of the tub. In the next scene, where we are looking straight at Penny Lane, the notes are still lined up on the edge of the tub.
{9} Looking for Easter Eggs on the 'Untitled: The Bootleg Cut Edition' DVD? On Disc 1 > Select the "Special Features" option at the main menu > highlight the "Love Comes And Goes" option then press Up to highlight a picture > press Enter to view an outtake clip featuring Kate Hudson. // On Disc 1. Select the "Audio" option at the main menu > highlight the "Commentary By Director Cameron Crowe" option, then press Right to highlight the center of the record label > press Enter to view an outtake clip featuring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Patrick Fugit. {10} When Penny Lane is driving William to the hotel to meet Stillwater, there is a reflection on the windshield that resembles the cover of Pink Floyd's album "Dark Side of the Moon".
{11} Cameron Crowe has stated the character of Penny Lane is based on his friend in real life, Pennie Trumble, who actually does go by the name of "Pennie Lane". She now lives in Portland, Oregon, and is involved in the music industry.
{12} The music budget for most films is $1.5m - for this film it was $3.5m
{13} Continuity error - When William is in the hotel room with Penny when she has taken Quaaludes, she has boots on when he picks her up off the floor and dances with her to keep here awake, further on in the scene, she is barefoot. He never puts her down and takes her boots off.
{14} In the "Tiny Dancer" scene on the bus, Penny is singing a different part of the song than what is playing when William tells her that he has to go home.
15} The scene where Penny flashes her breasts was improvised by Kate, when the director told her to just 'let loose' and feel the party, she ended up flashing the camera. The director gave her a week to think about whether she wanted to keep the scene in the movie, and she decided that she did.

WORTH WATCHING FOR...
... it's Almost Famous, it's an incredible movie - you just need to see this!

DISCUSS
Share your thoughts on this at our Forum
~~Rate this film at our Forum~~

Buy It
DVD: US (Region 1) | UK (Region 2)
Video: US (NTSC) | UK (PAL)

Promotional Events

"We're here for the music"

Last Updated: September 3rd 2007

Warning: include() [function.include]: open_basedir restriction in effect. File(/home/buffybot/public_html/kate/footer.html) is not within the allowed path(s): (/home/katehuds:/usr/lib/php:/usr/local/lib/php:/tmp) in /home/katehuds/public_html/kate/films/almostfamous.php on line 246

Warning: include(/home/buffybot/public_html/kate/footer.html) [function.include]: failed to open stream: Operation not permitted in /home/katehuds/public_html/kate/films/almostfamous.php on line 246

Warning: include() [function.include]: Failed opening '/home/buffybot/public_html/kate/footer.html' for inclusion (include_path='.:/usr/lib/php:/usr/local/lib/php') in /home/katehuds/public_html/kate/films/almostfamous.php on line 246