Cameron Crowe's "Almost Famous" is an autobiographical attempt to regain his lost youth. Though the talented director/writer has brought many classics to the big screen ("Fast Times at Ridgemont High" and "Jerry Maguire"), "Almost Famous" does not leave you with the same lasting impression. The film has an interesting, though slightly naive, take on the music industry: that the industry is, in fact, simply a search for truth, character and talent. Throughout the film the penetrating theme is the timeless cliche that people can indeed do the right thing.

In the movie, Crowe, here called William, recreates his own childhood when, as a boy of 15, he attempts to cover a story of a band named Still-water for the magazine Rolling Stone. The underlying story explains how a doubtful boy (played by Patrick Fugit) leapt from nothing to success in a starlit arena, maintaining his status by holding strong to his ambitions. The corny feeling of the movie begins when the boy's mother (Francis McDormand) instills in him the idea that you can do anything if you try hard enough.

My greatest criticism of the film is its sluggish pace and lack of action as William tries to uncover truth behind the music scene. It is not until William finds his "mentor" Lester (Phillip Seymour Hoffman), that he understands the ethics in the business and begins to accept his responsibility as a journalist.

The "band aids" (simply a clever name for groupies) play an unclear role in the film. These young girls may or may not provide sexual favors to tour with the band, but they certainly do not advance the plot or flesh out any of the other characters. William forms a personal relationship with Penny Lane (Kate Hudson), the "chick" of guitarist Russell (Billy Crudup). Penny's character is difficult to figure out-she gives her body to her lover but her soul remains frigid.

As an actress, however, Kate Hudson shines with a youthful innocence. This film could be the big break that Hudson needs so that she no longer has to ride on the coattails of her famous mom, Goldie Hawn.

Internal triangles emerge that complicate the film. Relationships between William, Penny, Russell, etc., provide the basis of the drama in the movie. William is mesmerized by the glamour of the industry and fails to do his job of telling the public the truth. Crowe portrays Rolling Stone as an unsupportive employer that abandons William when he fails at his first assignment.

Crowe's dramatization focuses on what the time during Stillwater's heyday was like instead of how (or if) everything works out in the end. His film is exciting and sentimental, holding onto the idea of being at the "right place at the right time."