Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Star in 'Ricki and the Flash' Out August 7th

Three-time Academy Award winning actress Meryl Streep joins her real-life daughter, Mamie Gummer, in Ricki and the Flash written by Diablo Cody (Juno, Young Adult and The United States of Tara) and directed by John Demme (The Silence of the Lambs, Philadelphia and The Manchurian Candidate) on August 7, 2015. The film follows Ricki (Streep) returning home to make things right with her family after having given up everything to pursue her dream of becoming a rock star. The film also stars Kevin Kline (A Fish Called Wanda, In & Out), Sebastian Stan (Captain America: The First Avenger, Black Swan), Rick Springfield and Ben Platt (Pitch Perfect, Pitch Perfect 2).

During a tribute to John Demme at the Los Angeles Film Festival, called Jonathan Demme: American Iconoclast, Demme, 71, dressed like a teenager, the LA Times reported, was introduced to discuss the upcoming film. Demme explained that Streep was very dedicated to the part and how she created her own persona.

"She wasn't playing anyone else," he said. After playing a clip from the upcoming film where Streep and Springfield play "Keep Playing that Rock 'N' Roll", it was noted that Streep studied guitar for months before filming began and then went through six weeks of band rehearsal as well. Demme also mentioned that all of the bar band music was neither dubbed nor recorded, that it was all recorded live. He said, "We didn't sweeten it up on the soundtrack with any overdubs in the post-production."

Something that Demme also went into was how he views a film as a moviegoer and how that came into play with taking on Ricki and the Flash: 

"I love rooting for the underdog, and in our patriarchal society, if you're going to divide it into underdogs and overlords in a male-female equation, the patriarchy is still functioning very powerfully. Women need to try that much harder, they are up against ... men aren't up against."

This statement really holds true to Demme's Oscar-winning film, Silence of the Lambs, with Clarice Starling's (Jodie Foster) inner struggle throughout the film.

Ricki and the Flash will be the film to see coming out August 7 with such a group of talented actors, writer and dedicated director. Check out the trailer here: