“Not Fade Away” is a deeply layered movie that will likely put off as many moviegoers as it intrigues. There are many points in the movie where you are unsure what direction it is trying to take. The movie takes place over the course of many years, but no titles appear to let you know time has passed. It is usually done by showing different holiday times. It can be Christmas in one scene and Thanksgiving is coming up in the next, so you know 11 months have passed. It’s actually comforting to see a director acknowledge that his audience is filled with intelligent people who don’t need everything explained to them.

David Chase shows he has skills both as an actor’s director and as a technical one. He does little things like have a close-up on one character’s ear while they are listening to a piece of music. There are great performances from all the actors, many of whom are no names you will probably recognize, and it shows he has an eye for talent. The biggest name in the movie probably belongs to James Gandolfini who plays Douglas’ father and suffers though his own personal demons in the movie.

If you read David Chase’s biography on IMDb you will discover that “Not Fade Away” must have been somewhat autobiographical. He too formed a band and was the drummer while growing up in New Jersey. At one point in the movie Douglas considers going to film school, so maybe “he”, Douglas, is the one who made this movie. It is rated R for pervasive language, some drug use, smoking and sexual content.