After more than two years of rumors, confirmations, Harry Potter character cameos, and flexed Foo Fighters abs, we at last have a trailer for CBGB, the forthcoming biopic (more or less) on the iconic New York punk club. In the two-minute clip above, we see Alan Rickman as founder Hilly Kristal, Foos drummer Taylor Hawkins as the eternally shirtless Iggy Pop, and Swedish actress Malin Akerman as Blondie’s Debby Harry. Also: the Ramones, Talking Heads, Lou Reed, and Patti Smith.
The preview casts the venue’s scrappier charms in a comedic light — cockroaches and electricity malfunctions make for good sight-gags — while its monetary woes and rising fame provide the necessary drama. “50,000 Bands. One Disgusting Bathroom,” goes the previously reported tagline. And as was also noted, the space’s actual toilets and cash register will be featured. As it turned out, the latter was about as useful as the former — a rent dispute shut it down in 2006.
If the trailer seems a little bit broad, well, that comes with the territory. The care given to assembling the film’s classics-packed soundtrack may bode well for the film itself.
