Instant Queue Diaries- Episode 12: The Commitments

the_commitmentsOriginally released in 1991, Alan Parker’s “The Commitments” is a cult classic and for great reason. Rarely do a bunch of no-name actors put in enough passion and poise to create something truly special, as the independent scene is filled with mediocrity and preachy messages that often fall flat to mainstream audiences.

As South Park’s Eric Cartman once said about independent films: “Aren’t those the movies about gay cowboys eating pudding?”

As far as “The Commitments” goes, there is nothing remotely preachy or mediocre here. As a matter of fact, you could argue that it’s the best independent film of the ’90s.

Telling the story of a group of misfits in Ireland that start their own soul band, the film is filled with humor, intrigue and some of the best music to ever grace the big screen.

I remember when I was a kid my father brought home the soundtrack and for a good two years or so, I thought “The Commitments” were a band. I had no idea that all this great music, unbelievable covers of everything from Percy Sledge’s “On the Dark End of the Street” and Otis Redding’s “Try a Little Tenderness” were featured on the album, so why would I ever think these people were capable of acting?

Well, they were. Feeling a bit like a documentary at times, most of the dialogue consists of the band’s manager and bootlegger, Jimmy Rabbitte, played by the charming, yet blunt Robert Arkins, trying to keep his band together and patting himself on the back whenever he can, conducting interviews with himself in the bathtub and on top of his bunk bed [Yes, he still lives at home and has also been on unemployment for over two years, but Ireland is a third-world country. What are you going to do?]. The rest of the dialogue is dedicated to the banter of the band during rehearsals and the consistent nagging of Rabbitte’s father, [played by Star Trek’s Colm Meaney] who refuses to acknowledge any other musician in the world, but the King, Elvis Presley.

Several scenes between the father and son make this apparent and give the film a nice balance between the music and grit.

Jimmy: Elvis is not soul!

Jimmy Sr.: Elvis is god!

Between the father/son banter and the huge amount of swearing, which is perhaps the reason why I didn’t watch it when it first came out, “The Commitments” never pretends to be something it’s not, as it is drenched in the sites of the Irish slums and the people and ideas that make the band choose to perform soul music in the first place.

“I’m black and it’s proud.”

Because of that, you’ll look past the raw acting performances of many of the actors and relish in what the band is trying to accomplish, even though you have no idea what that is. Everything seems to fall apart before the band can see how great they actually are and no one, in the end, is wiser because of it.

A testament to its ability to draw an audience in, you don’t even have to be a lover of cinema to appreciate “The Commitments.” Anyone who has ever had time to look back and think about the reasons why some of their garage bands have broken up over the years will also fall in love with this film. The clash of personalities, sex, drugs and money are all here and all play a quaint little role in the unfolding drama.

If that isn’t your cup of tea, you could just sit back and enjoy some great music.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14230 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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