William's (Patrick Fugit) elder sister, head in curlers bolts from home. Bending to kiss her brother a last time, she tells him to look under his bed and that what he finds there will set him free. Whether the stash of rock and roll records he finds liberate him or not, they awake a passion for music within him-this plus some good luck and a quick mind get him a scoop for the Rolling Stone Magazine. Not bad for a dimpled and distinctly uncool adolescent.

What follows is an unsentimental but watered down tale of a young boy coming of age against a wild and hallucigenic backdrop- he basks in the reflected fame of the up and coming band Stillwater (Run Deep?-perhaps) and forms a camaderie with the band and their entourage.

Nicknamed "The Enemy" as he is a rock critic his heroes grace the skies and fall with a drug-induced splash- they are only human after all. Amongst the groupies is "Penny Lane" played by Kate Hudson (Goldie Hawn's daughter) who manages the concoction of child-woman with charm and confidence. Her affair with with the band's guitarist (Billy Crudup) is based, she claims, on his musical talent. As far as she is concerned, the "real world" is for others, and from the first flick of her tresses, William is hooked.

Although the story mainly concentrates on the young boy and his various learning experiences, we don't lose sight of the adult undercurrents and of a jaded tired glamour on the verge of burning itself out. There are many people in this real world that choose to do the wrong thing time and time again and are more than happy to compromise for the here and now. Frances McDormand plays the now single mother, trying to do her best by her children and terrified of losing them both. There is also an appearance by Philip Seymour Hoffman as a middle aged uncool number one rock critic who acts as guide and friend to William. By turns the film is funny, euphoric and ugly. The fact that it is very much a period piece should not put people off, adolescence is one of those things that happen to everyone.