Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone

Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone
Film poster
Directed byLev Anderson and Chris Metzler
StarringJohn Norwood Fisher
Angelo Moore
Narrated byLaurence Fishburne
Music byFishbone
Distributed byPale Griot Film
Cinema Guild
Release dates
  • June 19, 2010 (2010-06-19) (Los Angeles Film Festival)
  • October 7, 2011 (2011-10-07) (United States)
Running time
107 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone is a 2010 American independent documentary film about the U.S. alternative rock band Fishbone.[1][2] Co-produced[3] and co-directed by Lev Anderson and Chris Metzler,[4][5] and narrated by actor Laurence Fishburne,[6][7] The film is listed on the 100 Best Documentaries as ranked by Rotten Tomatoes coming in at #74.[8]

Synopsis

Everyday Sunshine is a rock documentary[9][10] that recounts Fishbone's near breakthrough.[11] It chronicles the birth of the band,[12] its highs and lows,[13][5] and its influence on other bands.[12] The film centers on the partnership between founding members Norwood Fisher and Angelo Moore, and their struggle to keep Fishbone going.[1][11] Everyday Sunshine features interviews with members of the band,[14][9] footage of the band performing live,[3][7][12] and incorporates interviews with their friends and colleagues,[13] including Les Claypool,[15] George Clinton,[13][10] Perry Farrell,[9][12] Flea,[14][12] Bob Forrest,[9] Eugene Hütz,[11] Ice-T,[9][10] Branford Marsalis,[14][10] Questlove,[15][11] Tim Robbins,[12] Gwen Stefani,[14][10] and Mike Watt.[14] The band's origin story is told in animated flashbacks in the visual style of Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids.[11]

Release

Everyday Sunshine had its world premiere during the 2010 Los Angeles Film Festival, on June 19, 2010 followed by a semi-acoustic performance reuniting three of Fishbone's original members Chris Dowd, Norwood Fisher, and Dirty Walt.[16][14] This premiere helped mark Fishbone's 25th anniversary whose EP first debuted in 1985.[15]

After screening at SXSW and more than 150 film festivals around the world the film opened in select theaters on October 7, 2011 and continued to screen theatrically throughout the United States and Canada until the Spring of 2012.

A shorter, more historically themed version of the film aired on American Public Television's AfroPoP series hosted by stand-up comedian Wyatt Cenac, along with occasional broadcasts on the PBS TV station KQED documentary series Truly, CA.

In honor of Black History Month Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone debuted exclusively on iTunes on February 1, 2012 followed by a DVD release by the home video distributor, The Cinema Guild, on February 21, 2012.

In addition to interviews on MTV and with Tavis Smiley for promotion of the film's release the band performed on ABC's late-night talk show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" on January 30, 2012 and Fishbone's lead singer Angelo Moore was a musical guest on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" on June 27, 2012.

Reception

The film was critically acclaimed.[15] At Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 100% score, with an average rating of 7.40/10, based on 48 reviews. The website's critical consensus reads, "Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone is an entertaining, heartwarming, and balanced documentary about the influential Los Angeles band."[17] It was Rotten Tomatoes' highest scoring movie of 2011.[18] At Metacritic it has a weighted average score of 69 out of 100, based on 16 reviews.[19]

The New Yorker's Ben Greenman wrote, "Perceptive, plainspoken, frequently gripping... Many bands have a might-have-been story, but few have a story that reflects such rich and paradoxical ideas."[20] The Portland Mercury's Ned Lannamann called it "One of the best music documentaries, period."[21]

References

  1. ^ a b Morris, Wesley (11 January 2012). "Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone movie review". The Boston Globe. Boston Globe Media Partners. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  2. ^ Levy, Shawn (6 January 2011). "Review: keeping the beat with 'Reel Music 28'". The Oregonian. Oregon Live. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  3. ^ a b Webster, Andy (6 October 2011). "'Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone' — Review". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  4. ^ Hall, Stan (1 December 2011). "Indie & Arthouse films: PDX B-movies, 'The Misfits' and more". The Oregonian. Oregon Live. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  5. ^ a b G.M. (4 August 2012). "The Q&A: Norwood Fisher: The fate of Fishbone". The Economist. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  6. ^ "Fishbone documentary lands at Capitol Theatre". The Plain Dealer. Advance Ohio. 9 December 2011. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  7. ^ a b Hardy, Ernest (5 October 2011). "A Mash Note to Fishbone in Everyday Sunshine". The Village Voice. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  8. ^ "Top 100 Documentaries". Rotten Tomatoes. 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2021.
  9. ^ a b c d e King, Loren (1 January 2012). "Scene Here: Documentary 'Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone' the beat of legendary band". The Boston Globe. Boston Globe Media Partners. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  10. ^ a b c d e Roston, Tom (16 March 2011). "Doc Soup: Q&A with the Directors of 'Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone'". POV's Documentary Blog. PBS. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  11. ^ a b c d e Rosen, Jody (30 September 2011). "'Everyday Sunshine' Celebrates Ska-Punk Rockers Fishbone". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  12. ^ a b c d e f Goodykoontz, Bill (18 November 2011). "'Sunshine' shows flash, turmoil of Fishbone". USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  13. ^ a b c LaSalle, Mick (6 January 2012). "'Everyday Sunshine' movie review: Fishbone's tale". San Francisco Chronicle. Hearst Communications. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  14. ^ a b c d e f Olsen, Mark (21 June 2010). "'Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone' premieres at L.A. Film Festival". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  15. ^ a b c d Matheson, Whitney (2 February 2012). "Fishbone returns for more". USA Today. Gannett Company. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  16. ^ Dubuisson, Denis (5 June 2010). "Everyday Sunshine: the History of Fishbone Premieres Tonight!". Fishbone Live. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  17. ^ "Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone (2011)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  18. ^ "BEST OF THE BEST OFS: Movies 2011". George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 27 December 2011. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  19. ^ "Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
  20. ^ "EVERYDAY SUNSHINE: THE STORY OF FISHBONE". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on 9 October 2011. Retrieved 1 April 2022.
  21. ^ "Film Reviews". Portland Mercury. Portland Mercury. Retrieved 11 November 2020.