Rotten Tomatoes
Suggestions will appear as you start typing. Submit search Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes

The Buddy Holly Story

Play trailer Poster for The Buddy Holly Story PG 1978 1h 53m Biography Music Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
100% Tomatometer 32 Reviews 77% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
A chronicle of the rise and brief career of rock 'n' roll star Buddy Holly (Gary Busey), who aspires to play music the way he wants it to sound. Holly and his band, the Crickets, are first invited to record in Nashville, where they encounter creative differences with the producing staff. Later they play a major booking at the Apollo Theater, scheduled there under the mistaken assumption that they're a black band. Holly's career eventually goes solo -- until the tragic day the music dies.
Watch on Fandango Stream Now

Where to Watch

The Buddy Holly Story

Critics Reviews

View More
Gary Arnold Washington Post May 23, 2019
The film is an entertaining chronicle of Holly's brief but productive and influential career as a pioneering rock 'n' roll composer and singer. Go to Full Review Dave Kehr Chicago Reader May 23, 2019
The plotting of this 1978 biopic is contrived, and director Steve Rash's feeling for Buddy Holly's time and place is virtually nil, but Gary Busey's performance is astonishing-less as an interpretation than as a total physical transformation. Go to Full Review Vincent Canby New York Times May 23, 2019
It's Gary Busey's galvanizing solo performance that gives meaning to an otherwise shapeless and bland feature-length film about the American rock-and-roll star who was killed in a plane crash in 1959. Go to Full Review Sean Axmaker Stream on Demand Sep 23, 2026
This 1978 biopic is almost square in its straightforward storytelling yet utterly engaging and oddly expressive of the creative spirit from an unlikely rebel. Go to Full Review Rene Jordan El Nuevo Herald (Miami) Jan 17, 2024
The Buddy Holly Story is the best, because it dares to present the truth of social and rectorial opposition of Rock in the fifties. [Full review in Spanish] Go to Full Review Jordan M. Smith IONCINEMA.com Nov 3, 2020
2.5/5
A factual disaster and still wholly entertaining as a sort of performative docudrama that blurs the lines between Holly and Busey. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View More
Henry D @Henry_Domke Aug 5, 2026 Gary Busey was remarkably good as Buddy Holly, and it was surprising how convincingly he handled the singing. Many of the scenes without music were weak, but the musical sequences were consistently good. Fortunately, there was a great deal of music. One minor annoyance: there were no subtitles when we streamed it on The Criterion Channel. It was a very good print. See more thiago S @Thiagostone May 17, 2026 Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom See more Leaburn O @RT35452347 Oct 18, 2024 Decent biopic of a legend of the music industry. A bit wet and poetic licence used owing to the tragedy. A bit of a shame it didn’t cover the crash and aftermath. Watched on Amazon Prime. See more CodyZamboni Z @CodyZamboni Aug 28, 2024 Engaging performances, Great music, Entertaining.music bio pic. Movie has a nice feel for the time and place See more Tyler S @tylerking24 Jun 20, 2024 This was really good! At first, I was not a fan of how quickly paced the beginning felt, but it gradually got better as it went on. Buddy Holly is such an interesting character and I think they told his legacy pretty well. I was pretty cool to compare a biopic from 1978 to "Elvis" in 2022 and see how crazy different they are, but have a similar effect on you. See more Tony M @RT39492260 Nov 3, 2023 The Buddy Holly Story tells the story of the late great Buddy Holly. My late Brother and I watched this together many times back in the days when we were learning to play guitar. This movie holds much nostalgia for me. See more Read all reviews
The Buddy Holly Story

My Rating

Read More Read Less WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW POST RATING

Cast & Crew

View All

Steve Rash

Director

Gary Busey

Buddy

Don Stroud

Jesse

Charles Martin Smith

Ray Bob

William Jordan

Riley

Maria Richwine

Maria Elena

More Like This

View All
Bound for Glory 80% 76% Bound for Glory Watchlist Give 'Em Hell, Harry! 100% 84% Give 'Em Hell, Harry! Watchlist MacArthur 50% 58% MacArthur Watchlist Heart Like a Wheel 100% 82% Heart Like a Wheel Watchlist Joe Hill 50% 90% Joe Hill Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More
View All

The Buddy Holly Story

The Buddy Holly Story (1978) The Buddy Holly Story (1978) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis A chronicle of the rise and brief career of rock 'n' roll star Buddy Holly (Gary Busey), who aspires to play music the way he wants it to sound. Holly and his band, the Crickets, are first invited to record in Nashville, where they encounter creative differences with the producing staff. Later they play a major booking at the Apollo Theater, scheduled there under the mistaken assumption that they're a black band. Holly's career eventually goes solo -- until the tragic day the music dies.
Director
Steve Rash
Producer
Fred Bauer
Distributor
Columbia Pictures
Production Co
Innovisions
Rating
PG
Genre
Biography, Music
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 18, 1978, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Jul 8, 2014
Runtime
1h 53m
Join The Newsletter Join The Newsletter Cookie Settings