`STILL CRAZY' BEARS FINE FRUIT.

Byline: Glenn Whipp Daily News Film Critic

With its story of an aging group of British rock 'n' rollers reuniting for a last stab at immortality, ``Still Crazy'' bears more than a faint resemblance to everyone's favorite ``rockumentary,'' Rob Reiner's classic satire ``This Is Spinal Tap.''

But screenwriters Dick Clement and Ian Le Frenais, the team that gave us ``The Commitments'' as well as class British TV shows like ``Porridge'' and ``Auf Wiedersehen, Pet,'' are too smart to merely imitate someone else's handiwork. Thus, while it's often quite funny and appealingly whimsical, ``Still Crazy'' aims deeper to explore the harsh reality that follows people who peaked too soon in life and now must cope with boring, routine, everyday sameness.

That prospect doesn't suit Tony (Stephen Rea) much. So when he's asked to reunite his band, Strange Fruit, for the 20th anniversary of a Woodstock-like concert, Tony is more than happy to track down his old mates. There's Les (Jimmy Nail), the bass guitarist turned ace roofer. Drummer Beano Baggot (Timothy Spall) lives in a trailer near his mother's garden, while Ray (Bill Nighy), the egocentric lead singer, lives well beyond his means with his groupie-turned-wife (Helena Bergstrom) on a country estate.

Obviously, these guys could use the work. Problem is, they still hate each other. Les openly despises the pretentious Ray and loves to goad him about his diminished singing abilities. The Fruits (yes, the film does get a lot of comic mileage out of the band's name) are also haunted by the death of the original lead singer, Keith, and the strange disappearance of his fragile guitarist brother, Brian (Bruce Robinson).

For awhile, the band is held together by their faithful Scottish road manager Hughie (Billy Connolly), whose sharp one-liners help defuse the simmering rivalries. (``I love the sound of vomit in the morning!'') There's also the Fruits' original personal assistant, Karen (Juliet Aubrey), a woman who rejoins the band out of a sense of loyalty and quiet desperation.

In less capable hands, every one of these people could have easily become rock 'n' roll caricatures instead of fully and lovingly realized human beings. Even (and especially) the vainglorious Ray is portrayed as less a buffoon than an insecure man terrified of making a fool of himself as he's nearing his 50th birthday. Nighy's layered performance is one of the year's best. As a bonus, he does all his own singing, too.

The band's music, all original songs, is actually pretty good, a credit to Chris Difford (best-known for his lyrics for Squeeze) and music written by Mick Jones (Foreigner), Jeff Lynne, Russ Ballard and Clive Langer. The bluesy, hard-rock songs come off as a cross between Eric Burdon and the Animals and Cheap Trick, although not nearly as horrible as that might sound in practice.

The best thing about ``Still Crazy,'' though, is its uncanny and warmly sympathetic depiction of a group of middle-age men trying to recapture something that they don't know how they created in the first place. Back in the '70s, the band didn't even think about it - the music just came. Now, they're older and more mature, but more vulnerable, too. Will the Fruits get a second chance or just bollix things up, like they usually do?

We won't spoil the fun. But we guarantee you'll be rooting for the boys to make good.

THE FACTS

The film: ``Still Crazy'' (R; sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll language).

The stars: Stephen Rea, Billy Connolly, Jimmy Nail, Timothy Spall, Bill Nighy, Juliet Aubrey and Helena Bergstrom.

Behind the scenes: Directed by Brian Gibson. Screenplay by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais.

Running time: One hour, 36 minutes.

Playing: At Goldwyn Pavilion in West Los Angeles for seven-day Academy Award qualification run. Returns to theaters on Jan. 22.

Our rating: Three and one half stars.