| Hype! | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Doug Pray |
| Produced by | Steven Helvey |
| Starring | Numerous musicians |
| Cinematography | Robert Bennett |
| Edited by | Doug Pray Joan Zapata |
| Distributed by | Cinepix Film Properties |
Release date |
|
Running time | 87 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Hype! (1996) is a documentary directed byDoug Pray about the popularity ofgrunge rock in the early to mid-1990s United States. It incorporates interviews and rare concert footage to trace the development of the grunge scene from its early beginning in neighborhood basements to its emergence as an explosivepop culture phenomenon.Hype! attempts to dispel some of the myths of the genre promulgated bymedia hype by depicting the grunge subculture from the point of view of people who were active in the scene. The film generally portrays thismythos in a satirical way while acknowledging that it was media hype that helped propel some of these obscure bands to fame.
The film premiered at theSundance Film Festival in January 1996. It opened in two theaters (one in New York and one in Seattle) on November 8.[1]
The film holds a 93% rating onRotten Tomatoes based on 27 reviews with anaverage rating of 7.5/10.[2]
Hype! includes interviews and performances from bands (primarily oriented with theSub Pop Records axis) such asTAD,Blood Circus,Mudhoney,Nirvana,Soundgarden,Coffin Break,The Gits,Love Battery,Flop,The Melvins,Some Velvet Sidewalk,Mono Men,Supersuckers,Zipgun,Seaweed,Pearl Jam,7 Year Bitch,Hovercraft,Gas Huffer, andFastbacks. It also features interviews with band managerSusan Silver, record producersJack Endino andSteve Fisk, and photographerCharles Peterson.[3]
Along with the DVD that comes with Nirvana'sWith the Lights Out, it is one of the few films to contain video footage of Nirvana's first performance of their breakthrough hit, "Smells Like Teen Spirit".
In the film, Seattle producer/engineerJack Endino is humorously referred to as "the godfather of grunge."[4]
Sub Pop released asoundtrack to the film in 1996 on CD and a limited box set on colored 7" vinyl.AMG entry
| Chart (2017) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| USTop Music Video Sales (Billboard)[5] | 11 |
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