Live Forever

Synopsis: It is 1994 in Britain, the end of the grunge era has been ushered in by the suicide of Kurt Cobain and the populace is crying out for its replacement. The time was ripe for something new. Britpop began, and some believe ended, with the band Oasis.

Covering everything from the Blur Vs Oasis battle, Tony Blair’s youth-oriented campaign to become Prime Minister, then finally the Blair betrayal and the fall of Oasis in the late 1990s and the rise of Robbie Williams, Live Forever follows a fascinating era in recent musical, pop cultural and political history.

John Dower’s brilliantly paced and written documentary Live Forever follows the rise and fall bands such as Oasis, Blur, Pulp, Massive Attack, Elastica, and Underworld and the world’s temporary fascination with everything British during the mod-90s. There are some great interviews, some of the standouts including the Gallagher Brothers (Liam appears to be a moron whilst Noel is hilarious), Damon Albarn (still touchy when asked about the Blur Vs Oasis controversy) and Jarvis Cocker (informative with an acid wit). As well as following the music John Dower's film examines the whole “Rule Britannia” phenomena, which infused the Western world thanks to films like Trainspotting, looking at the victorious Blair youth campaign which was closely associated with Britpop, which as a sideline caused Noel Gallagher to lose his working class credibility by attending a gathering at Number 10.

Live Forever is the first documentary I’ve seen that deals with an era or event that I lived through and am familiar with. I was a fan of Blur so naturally I hated Oasis (well said I did, but secretly thought they were quite melodic) and loved Pulp. But being in Australia the political ramifications of the era were unknown and it was great to find all this out. As well as the political side of things there are also the usual “revelations” about drug induced nihilism and trashed hotel rooms etc. But all that aside, the music of the time was very good and the soundtrack is brilliant in the choices of songs made. Featuring bands like Massive Attack, Radiohead, Underworld, Elastica, and of course Pulp, Blur and Oasis, the soundtrack is a must own for all fans of Britpop or good music in general.

Live Forever is a funny, informative, and well-constructed look at a time in pop culture history when the Brits could do no wrong in film, music or art. For four to five years they were on top and then came crashing down and have yet to regain their influence in the world of pop music.

Want more about this film?

Want something different?