"Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping" is a sendup of the pop, rock and rap music scenes and the marketing hype that sustains those who can master the branding of their bands, regardless of their level of artistic talent. Andy Samberg (”Brooklyn Nine-Nine”) is hilarious as a white rapper notorious for his ad for “White Butt Jeans” who takes himself way too seriously and has split off from his wildly popular boy band with the goal of becoming a worldwide celebrity on his own.
On the surface, the film is a fun and crazy romp through the music industry satirizing the PR hype that surrounds it, written and directed by “Saturday Night Live” alums Akiva Shaffer and Jorma Taccone. Shaffer and Taccone are also quite masterful in their sincere portrayals of the two members of the boy band whom Samberg's character has ditched in his quest for fame as a soloist. The guys are aided by a host of tongue-in-cheek cameos, some credited, some uncredited, by industry icons such as Usher, 50 Cent, Akon, Adam Levine, Justin Timberlake, Pink, Snoop Dogg and Seal — as well as crazy scenes with Martin Sheen, Will Arnett and Will Forte.
The story parodies the formulas behind selling albums and tours, strategies that are all powerful to the point of providing success to productions with non-existent music and inane lyrics. Parts of the humor become repetitive. However, you probably won't notice, as it's so much good fun.
In the end, the guys must recover their musical style again, after they have fallen victim to the marketing predators and after each has hit bottom in his own way. Stay for the end. The final number is worth your time. It has the poetic quality and musical emotion that has been missing all along. This movie is lively and entertaining and does drive home a point about the fine line that exists between artistic expression and the drive for money and fame.
Coincidentally, the movie is also timely today, with the highly publicized trial over whether or not Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page and Robert Plant lifted music from a band they had opened for at the beginning of their careers to compose one of the greatest guitar intros in rock history — the plaintive melody that sets the tone for “Stairway to Heaven.”
The bottom line is that artistic expression is universal. You would have to copy something in every detail to really “steal” it. The case does bring to light the incredible amount of creative genius in the music industry, an industry that should not be defined by those who are simply better at branding their work.
Take the older, more mature kids to this one (strong and sometimes vulgar language), or choose to take someone with a finely tuned sense of humor and love of music as your date.
Rated R. 87 minutes.
Kathryn Whitney Boole has spent most of her life in the entertainment industry, which is the backdrop for remarkable adventures with extraordinary people. She is a Talent Manager with Studio Talent Group in Santa Monica. Reach her at kboole@gmail.com. For previously published reviews, see https://kwboole.wordpress.com.
