Music isn't All in the Ear: It's All Gone Pete Tong

Today was supposed to be the day I watched Puneet's Force Fed Film, but with life being as full of unexpected surprises as it usually is, i wasn't able to watch it. What i was able to do instead thought was watch the mockumentary It's All Gone Pete Tong. This comedy spoof on the documentary formula follows a massively famous club DJ in Italy who becomes deaf due to the extreme volume of music in his work. But is it all just played for laughs? Hit the jump for the whole scoop.


So the film starts out talking about how this amazing and highly  talented DJ, Frankie Wilde, canished and no one knows where he went. It then flashes to a drugged out, unkempt man, dancing and generally just going mad. It's implied that he's had a massive breakdown, and the film is about how he got to this point and where he goes from there. We get to see a ton of club scenes and great club music, and there seemed to be a fair amount about the actual mixing of music too. Maybe it's just because I'm ignorant of the mixing culture, but it seemed good to me, as a layman.

Frankie Wilde loves to constantly go to the extreme

I have to say, when the film started up, I didn't know what to expect. It shows all these clips of this, to be blunt, extremely ugly man, who is just drunk and drugged OUT. OF. HIS. MIND. He rambles and seems to have no idea what's going on around him. We learn that he's been this world famous DJ for 11 years in the best club scenes of Italy, and basically he's just been on an 11-year-long bender, partying non-stop. He's just such an unlikable character that I almost couldn't stand to look at him. He's just stupid and ignorant and he seems to be surrounded by equally terrible people. But then it all changes when he learns he's going deaf.

I can honestly say that I can't think of a single character that I've seen go through so many changes in a single film. The overall character arc of Frankie Wilde is so huge and changes so drastically that it's hard not to respect the film, even if you don't like it. Personally, I liked it. There are some really crazy F-ed up moments, like the physical representation of his drug habit and withdrawal, appearing as a huge skunk or badger or something wearing a torn and bloodied apron with fairy wings and a magical wand. It then just beats him up and forces him to do cocaine.

Frankie learns the truth behind his hearing loss and the full extent of the damage

Around the half way point I was almost considering abandoning the movie and just watching something else. It was just so messed up and stupid. My friend even commented at the same time "This movie sucks." But then it takes a turn as he learns to deal with his deafness and it actually becomes a pretty good drama with an interesting message. By the end I was actually really liking Frankie and everything that happened.

I'm super glad I stuck it out to the end, which was no small feat. I really mean it when I say I had to stick to it. I was on the verge of hating this movie before it was even half over as it just seemed like such a waste of time. Luckily the back half of the film was pretty great, and for that reason I recommend giving it a shot. Hopefully you might even find that the absurdity of the beginning of the movie is funny, in which case you may even love the film in it's entirety. Take the chance, see this movie.