The Runaways

With this authentically scuzzy take on the rise of original punk girl group the Runaways, director Floria Sigismondi captures the mix of grit, glam, and adolescent abandon that propelled the band to fame amid the teenage wasteland of 1970s Southern California. It’s there that two friends—tough-girl guitarist Joan Jett (Kristen Stewart) and blonde-tressed singer Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning)—go from rebel teens to rock stars under the Svengali-like influence of impresario Kim Fowley (Michael Shannon). With their swaggering image and raw talent, the Runaways quickly earn a name for themselves even as the pressures of life in the rock ’n’ roll fast lane begin to pull them apart.

Starring Dakota Fanning, Kristen Stewart, Michael Shannon