Killing Bono

[mandmc10]

Well.. it was a bit too long (almost 2 hours) with just a few funny bits and a some nice songs and LOTS of free popcorn (due to LOTS of empty seats). I wouldn't p*y to watch it!!! free popcorn added more to my enjoyment of the evening than the film itself.. Though I must admit it did liven up a bit towards the end!!! 3/10 for the movie and at least another 5 for the popcorn and the smiley welcoming Virgin girl!

[Diane65]

Watched this at the Trafford Centre which was about 70% full, we got free popcorn and we had our picture taken when we arrived under the Virgin sign with our tickets showing my name (a name made up by the dude) and the Virgin logo as they said Virgin wanted a snap shot of the different types of people who attend the screenings (not sure what category I fit into).

I actually quite enjoyed the film it was very predictable but I didn't have high expectations anyway. I recognised loads of places in Dublin and didn't realise it was based on a true story of a rival band. 7/10

[alythonian]

As a huge U2 fan I wasn't sure what I was going to make of this, especially after having read articles at the weekend about it and how they had changed the name of the book and the ending from neil mcCormack's original.

The wigs were comedy, especially the poor bloke playing Bono. We all know Bono was never ever blessed with a good haircut from about 1985 onwards, but the wig did take the biscuit!

Having read the U2 biogs and quite possibly every U2 book written in the English language there were many an inaccuracy about U2, but that really wasn't the point of the film.

It was basically Neil macCormack (who is frequently mentioned in the U2 books for his rock journalism) sending himself up for being a complete pillock in the 80's and it was comedic.

the music was good with the background stuff playing on chords and themes from the U2 classics.

As a U2 nut, I really enjoyed it for what it was, a good laugh and him laughing at himself retrospectively.

I'd give it 7/10 but I'm biased.

The Joshua Tree Tour, now that was a gig. Croke Park - best bithday ever!!

Sorry!!!

[marjoreemarjora]

Well I thoroughly enjoyed this in Edinburgh and unlike Biggins would happily go and see it again at the pictures let alone watch it on DVD . Unlike Alythonian am not a huge U2 fan. So glad I went to see if and vexed so many folks did not get there, my son would have loved it.

Really like Ivan (Robert Sheehan) now there is someone who will have a huge following.

Nice to see Pete Postlethwaite thought he was quite believable and felt quite sad when he said "A word to the wise from an old man before you go. Remember only this: the measure of a man is what's left when fame falls away" Pete will be long remembered.

enjoyed the film so much forgot to eat my popcorn

8.5/10 from me

[ejwrank]

Well I also quite enjoyed the film but also did not expect too much and perhaps having the director Nick Hamm
and actor Ben Barnes for a Q&A helped a bit. During the Q&A session they had a live messageboard in the background which was flashing up things like "You are hot Ben" and "Can you fix my cat, Ben, it is broken" and similar stuff and Ben Barnes seemed quite amazed at it all and very likeable. The director took all this with good grace and seemed well aware that people wanted to see Ben and not him.

Thanks to a_person for the tickets and glad to see Bevvy, 5rannoch and cliveas (from a ways down the row) and also Valda who was my +one.

Of course the hardest part of the evening was waiting to be let in at Prince Charles and then having to pretend I was a_person. I mean no one can impersonate a_person --I don't know that many naughty words!

[jem&theholograms]

I've never been to a Virgin screening before, is this popcorn malarkey the norm? I also went to Marble Arch which was pretty empty. It's a shame with the moving of the Mayfair screening too, as expect some people can't make the new date.

At first I was a bit disappointed and thought this isn't going to be as good as expected (my expectations weren't overly high, but expected a good, quirky comedy), but definitely did pick up and had some good scenes and funny bits. Especially liked Pete Postlethwaite, Robert Sheehan was also good, though his hair got increasingly scary! I'm a bit of a music geek, so I did enjoy the story, but I don't think I'd overly recommend it and don't think it will stand the test of time. I think you do end up rooting for them and with each bad decision you're cringing a bit more. 6/10 from me.

[kevinknapman]

So glad that person managed to fix their cat. I was starting to get worried.

I thought this was quite entertaining and watchable with a decent cast but with one fundamental flaw. How do you make an almost 2 hour film work when your central character is a bit of a dick? The answer is you can't.
What's worse, the filmmakers actually made their own job harder for themselves by making up stuff that makes the character even more harder to identify with. So for the record, Mark McCormick never told Bono that his Brother Ivan wouldn't join his band, nor did he cheat on his girlfriend. These incidents were just made up for the film.
It's a shame that it's partly based on Mark's book as to make this work better I think they should have made Ivan the main character. So that you have a likeable lead character that is held back by his older more irresponsible arsehole of a brother. Think of a more comedic Irish rock 'n' roll version of The Fighter. As it is it's hard to sympathise with him.
Still it was occasionally amusing and some of the acting was really good. Ben Barnes actually wasn't that bad and I really liked Robert Sheehan. Peter Serafinowicz hammed it up rotten (but in a fun way) and Pete Postlethwaite showed how good an actor he was by taking a potentially dodgy role of the camp landlord and actually making it work.
It was worth seeing though and was often very funny but it was also slightly frustrating as it was easy to see how it could have been so much better. Having Clement and La Frenais on board as writers also didn't help as it just reminded me of The Commitments which worked so much better as a film.

The Q&A after was fun as well. Ben Barnes is usually good value at these kinds of things and was very funny. Also a pleasure to see the lovely Helen from LOVEFiLM again (she did the Luc Besson Q&A after Adele Blanc-Sec at the BFI).

[funthing29]

My overall impression of this film was meh. It was lame and tried to fit into so many categories (comedy, drama, music) that it failed on all counts. The pacing is all over the place and Ben Barnes’ accent kept jumping from Irish to English. Barnes was fairly decent in the lead role but it is hard to root for such an unlikeable character and as such I am indifferent to what happens to him. This seriously dragged in the middle and was longer than it needed to be. The supporting cast were a treat, especially the guy playing Bono (so similar!) and Serafinowicz almost stole his scenes. I thought Sheehan did very well and is essentially the heart of the story (ie everything Neil does is to keep his brother at his side).

My favourite part of the movie was the songs, I might check out the soundtrack on this one. Overall a very uneven movie that never comes together and makes no emotional connection with the audience. 3/10.

I saw this at Marble Arch and was surprised at the number of empty seats. The only person I saw was mcm but seems there were some other members I never met. Free popcorn was a nice treat.

[bobbygaff]

Decent enough film, not as good as what I thought it would be like. Thought Pete Postlethwaite had a good cameo though. Decent enough performances and some good tunes played.

All in all a good night, the popcorn was delicious!!

Film number 8 of the unofficial 100 free films in 2011 club hahaha!!

[reddie2]

As a fan of 80s' U2, I enjoyed the movie loads. Would have killed Neil rather than Bono in more than one occasion and only brotherly love did not make Ivan (Misfits' Robert Sheehan, who is insanely talented IMHO) do it himself
Still don't know which genre this film would fit as it was not a comedy but definitely not a drama either, but for me it's a 7/10 and will look for the soundtrack