Spinning Gold movie review & film summary (2023)

The key issue, in this case, can be traced to the credits. The film was written and directed by Timothy Scott Bogart, son of Neil Bogart, and he is also one of the four Bogarts listed among the 29 credited producers, to say nothing of the additional ones who turn up in various positions in the end credits. (“Play It Again, Sam” didn’t have this many Bogarts in it.) Perhaps inevitably, the resulting film is basically a testimonial to the old man who may have done a couple of sketchy things here and there but who was basically a good egg who loved his family, cared about his loyal co-workers, and who was, of course, passionate about the music. As a result, many of the more questionable aspects of his life and work have been smoothed over or eliminated along the way, particularly how he rode Casablanca to astonishing heights in the late 1970s before crashing it with such force that one of the six major international record companies nearly dissolved as a result.

Instead, we are treated to a rags-to-riches saga about how Bogart (Jeremy Jordan), spurred on by his love of music and his willingness to always bet on himself, formed Casablanca Records. After a few character-building hiccups (such as releasing an album of audio clips from The Tonight Show in the mistaken belief that a record with Johnny Carson’s name on it would be an instant smash), he finally becomes a success due to such discoveries as KISS, Donna Summer, and The Village People and a flair for merchandising and promotion that was unheard of in those days. Sure, the road isn’t that smooth for Bogart—he leaves his loyal first wife Beth (Michelle Monaghan) for KISS co-manager Joyce Biawitz (Lyndsy Fonseca), which leaves him reluctant to release the group’s sure-fire ballad “Beth” as a single on the belief that it is a dig at his personal issues. Later on, Bogart gets lured into drugs via George Clinton (Wiz Khalifa), but it all pays off at the end when Bogart is able to sell half-interest in the company to PolyGram in 1977 for a huge profit.

That is pretty much the climax of the film, but, as those who know the actual story know, there was a lot more that occurred up to Bogart's official departure from the label in 1980. Like many other record labels at the time, Bogart bet heavily on the popularity of disco music, a format that didn’t feature too many acts with lasting shelf value and would see its bottom fall out within a couple of years. There was more success with KISS, but even there, the sheer hubris on display led to insane moves, most notably the decision to have each member record a solo album to be released on the same day, a “triumph” of marketing that yielded total sales on the level that a single and presumably cheaper band album would have accomplished. Before long, the label was losing millions of Polygram’s money before they finally bought Bogart out and gave him the heave-ho. With the passage of time, it would become apparent that Bogart was less an anomaly than simply ahead of the curve, and his tendency to overspend on easily promotable trends (than taking the time to nurture longer-lasting acts) was a harbinger of things to come.