San Francisco Frontiers - 'Are we ready?' Oasis film captures band's frosty reunion

Film creator Steven Knight described how Liam Gallagher arrived for the first meeting in 15 years with estranged brother Noel at a tense rehearsal ahead of their "Live '25" tour.

"He (Liam) walks in and says 'are we ready? Are we ready? Should we go?' And then they all said, "Yeah, okay, okay. 1,2,3,4, bang!" Knight, creator of the "Peaky Blinders" TV series and the writer of the new James Bond film, told AFP.

"They're English working-class men, they're not going to show emotion, not going to even shake hands."

The film shows the Manchester-born brothers gradually burying one of the most famous feuds in modern rock music, which dates back to a 2009 backstage fight before a concert in Paris, Knight added.

Fans began gathering at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday morning ahead of the premiere of the film, titled "Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger", with the Gallagher brothers waving to them from a boat as they arrived in the sun-drenched Italian city.

Their on-stage reunion last year saw an outpouring of 1990s nostalgia and support for Oasis, one of the biggest rock bands of the past 30 years, with the film seeking to explain why they have such strong cross-generational appeal, Knight added.

Liam and Noel's reconciliation was helped by the budding relationships between their children who didn't know each other before the reunion, according to Knight.

"I think once their kids got involved, that was the cement. Their kids met and became mates," he added.

"We all know that when your kids meet and they get on, you see that they're doing everything again, making the same mistakes again, it's great. It's the only compensation for getting old," he added.

Asked about his work on the next Bond, Knight said he couldn't talk about it, adding only: "I'm very much looking forward to that. It's going to be really good."

- Music at the cinema -

"Don’t Look Back in Anger" is part of a trend of major artists releasing tightly controlled big-screen films about their tours, allowing fans who missed out on tickets to get an alternative view of the shows.

Taylor Swift's film about her Eras Tour in 2023 grossed an estimated $260 million worldwide, while Beyonce also released a movie the same year about her tour, raking in $44 million.

"I think it's really good, and the reason that anyone wants to fund something like this is because they see a precedent," Knight added.

The Oasis movie was directed by renowned British music documentary makers Dylan Southern and Will Lovelace who worked alongside Knight.

Lovelace said they were initially "daunted" by the task.

"The eyes of the world are on this thing, and it involves two brothers who are famously volatile and we didn't know how it was going to turn out," he told AFP.

The Oasis duo as well as British acting superstar Robert Pattinson, appearing for his new film "Primetime", brought a buzz to the Venice festival on Saturday which has been largely shunned by big Hollywood studios this year.

"Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger" releases worldwide from September 9.

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P.Adams--SFF