Current release: JOY DIVISION
You've seen CONTROL (well, probably, anyway - it seemed quite popular here in the UK at least), the black-and-white biopic of Ian Curtis. Well now here's the real deal (in colour) as the documentary JOY DIVISION brings the story of the titular band to the screen.
Through archive footage, interviews with all major players (including the recently deceased Factory Records guru Tony Wilson) and some arty-farty visuals, we see the story of not just Ian Curtis (though he takes centre stage) but of the band itself. Where it came from, how it happened, and where it went, it's all here and while unlikely to do much at the box office it's arguably the more valuable film.
Most impressive is the picture that the film builds of the time and place - not just of the kind of bands that emerged but why they emerged, how they emerged and where they emerged from. The grim portrait painted of the early 80s post-industrial wasteland that was Manchester is a powerful one, and is aided along the way by then-and-now pictures of key locations. It's ironic that Manchester is now so much changed for the better that although the city now appears more vibrant, many of the venues and places that shaped its legendary music scene no longer exist.
And on that subject, the only real problem I had with the film was the almost God-like reverence shown towards Curtis and the band that not only establishes Curtis as a musical genius (he may well have been) but also seems to imply that Joy Division were almost the main catalyst for the change in Manchester in the years since. Simply put, I have my doubts that they were quite as important as this film suggests. Brilliant, yes; influential, without question - but beyond that I'm just not sure.
Then again, I've never actually been to Manchester, so don't listen to me.
Through archive footage, interviews with all major players (including the recently deceased Factory Records guru Tony Wilson) and some arty-farty visuals, we see the story of not just Ian Curtis (though he takes centre stage) but of the band itself. Where it came from, how it happened, and where it went, it's all here and while unlikely to do much at the box office it's arguably the more valuable film.
Most impressive is the picture that the film builds of the time and place - not just of the kind of bands that emerged but why they emerged, how they emerged and where they emerged from. The grim portrait painted of the early 80s post-industrial wasteland that was Manchester is a powerful one, and is aided along the way by then-and-now pictures of key locations. It's ironic that Manchester is now so much changed for the better that although the city now appears more vibrant, many of the venues and places that shaped its legendary music scene no longer exist.
And on that subject, the only real problem I had with the film was the almost God-like reverence shown towards Curtis and the band that not only establishes Curtis as a musical genius (he may well have been) but also seems to imply that Joy Division were almost the main catalyst for the change in Manchester in the years since. Simply put, I have my doubts that they were quite as important as this film suggests. Brilliant, yes; influential, without question - but beyond that I'm just not sure.
Then again, I've never actually been to Manchester, so don't listen to me.
Labels: documentaries, Music on film
posted by Alan at 6:16 pm
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