From the Boston Underground Film Festival: ‘Freakscene: The Story of Dinosaur Jr.’ Tells the Story of an ’80s Grunge Band With Music at Its Core

“Freakscene: The Story of Dinosaur Jr.” tells the story of one of the most influential rock bands of the ’80s and early ’90s: Dinosaur Jr. Music takes center stage in this film, conveying the band’s ups, downs, and everything in between. “Freakscene” doesn’t try to do too much and that’s largely why it’s successful. The film’s focused plot, supplemented with interviews and home-movie style videos of the band’s concerts, lets the story unfold in an engaging way for rock fans and outsiders alike.

From the band’s inception to its modern day presence, viewers are taken on a chronological journey through Dinosaur Jr.’s rise to the top of rock music and eventual fall. Highlighting the band’s evolving dynamics from their founding in Amherst, Massachusetts, and beyond, “Freakscene” explores male connection through the members’ shared passion of music. J Mascis, Murph, and Lou Barlow of Dinosaur Jr. were able to achieve great success despite the roadblocks in their way.

“They were communicating but not really, they were close but not touching,” said Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon, who toured with Dinosaur Jr. United by a shared passion for music creation, the trio played a role in establishing grunge, the early ’90s alternative rock genre that started in Seattle, but quickly spread elsewhere. Clips of old concerts, album cover art, and seemingly hand-drawn transitions create a dark aesthetic that feels authentic to the band’s musical identity. Attention-grabbing quotes like “You’re there to assault people,” by the band’s bassist, Lou Barlow, and stories of promoters banning Dinosaur Jr. from playing venues all contribute to the development of the band’s perspective on what their music should achieve in a shocking but engaging way.

The trio was dedicated to creating art, but that dedication eventually broke them.

“It never occurred to us that it was supposed to be fun,” Barlow said. The trio rarely celebrated their successes or congratulated themselves, generating a toxic environment in which they hated each other. Instead of dramatizing J, Murph, and Lou’s conflict, Reichenheim chooses to portray the situation as honestly as possible. Highlighting the nostalgia and maturity with which the band looks back on their issues instead of exaggerating the negativity felt all those years ago, “Freakscene” feels candid and complete.

The balance between present-day interviews and old-school footage of the band in their prime creates a cohesive narrative that unites the band’s past with its present. Delving briefly into problems the band encountered with the music industry, the film focuses not only on internal conflict but external conflict as well. Citing the recreation of popular sounds in copy-cat bands over a two-year period during the ’90s, the film gives a robust account of Dinosaur Jr.’s decline.

Footage of the band’s reunion in 2005 and subsequent tours cement this new chapter in Dinosaur Jr.’s history. Interviews with Barlow and Murph convey their excitement about the band’s future and the new mindset that they’ve gained with time away from playing music together. Though the trio’s priorities may have shifted, they still approach music creation with a heartfelt passion that can be felt in how they play today.

A fascinating look at the band that paved the way for rock music in the ’80s, “Freakscene: The Story of Dinosaur Jr.” achieves its goals with a balance of nostalgia and maturity. Grounded in Dinosaur Jr.'s music, the film is simple and effective, making it a captivating story of revival.

—Staff writer Anna Moiseieva can be reached at anna.moiseieva@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter at @AMoiseieva