My little ‘Runaways’

Quick quiz: Who can claim as mid-1970s opening acts Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Van Halen, Cheap Trick, and the Ramones. Answer: Five teenage girls who really rocked. Founded by guitarist Joan Jett, The Runaways were a quintet of young musicians who shot out of Los Angeles and took the music world by storm with a loud, brash rock style that fans had never seen from women before. In the new band biopic The Runaways, Kristen Stewart portrays the talented rebel, Jett, and her New Moon co-star Dakota Fanning plays lead singer Cherie Currie, who was once called the long lost daughter of Iggy Pop and Brigitte Bardot. The film chronicles the creation of the band and its fast tracked path to stardom and excess. Oscar-nominee Michael Shannon stars as band manager Kim Fowley, and Alia Shawkat and Tatum O’Neal co-star. The Runaways is out in limited release this Friday, so check local listings before heading to the theater. Rated PG-13.