Foo Fighters: Back and Forth

I grew up in the 1990’s, so it’s pretty much required that I like the Foo Fighters. So when I heard they were premiering a Foo Fighters documentary at SXSW I was intrigued. I grew up listening to Nirvana, and the Foo Fighters early albums are great. I can still vividly remember some of their music videos, when you could still see videos on TV. But by the time I got to high school and they were at their most popular my interest in the band had already waned. But it’s good to revisit an old friend from your youth.

“Foo Fighters: Back and Forth,” is a documentary that covers the 16 year span of the Foo Fighters music. It starts with the inception of the band after the death of Kurt Cobain and ends with them making their latest album in Dave Grohl’s garage. The film was incredibly interesting in the beginning. Seeing the bands early days and reliving some of the music I love was great. I also had no idea the band experienced so many changes in their lineup through out the years. To see them rise from obscurity to being one of the biggest bands in the world is pretty incredible even if their new music isn’t my cup of tea.

Where the film goes wrong is the third act. Understandably the film is about the Foo Fighters now, so the third act is all about recording their new album. But for someone like me this is the worst part because I couldn’t care less about their new music. I’m not gonna sit here and shit on the Foo Fighters. They wouldn’t be where they are if they weren’t great. Bands evolve over time, and their music changes; it’s natural. But their new music doesn’t even compare to their first few albums for me. It is pretty interesting to see the process, but not enough. And this is really not the fault of the band or the movie; it’s just my personal problem. If the film ended with them playing at Wembley Stadium then that would have been good enough for me. If you’re a Foo Fighters fan then this film is a must see for you. If you’re not, the film is still pretty interesting and might make a fan of you yet.