20 Feet From Stardom

20 Feet From Stardom (Morgan Neville, 2014)

Click here for the basics

Rating: DOCQ=6, DOCP=7 / First Rate

Scale K=3, Scale L=3, Scale M=4, Scale N=3

Documentary, Music, History

As a singer who has never really wanted the baggage that comes from being a "star," I thoroughly enjoyed this film about the singers that have made (and will make) a tremendous impact on music history and our culture. Back-up singers bring the feeling, the soul, the overall style to so many popular songs. Without them, music would be very different. It's sad that so many of them did not get credit for their acheivements, for whatever political or personal reasons. And it is also sad that sometimes they can't overcome the back-up singer status and make it as a solo artist. But sometimes, as many of the musicians in this film state, that's the way it should be. Great, powerful singers are not all hungry for fame. Music is the important thing, and harmonizing in the background--blending and forming the song into something bigger--is a really solid place to live.

I love rock 'n roll history films. They always remind me of my strong opinion that the best way to learn history is by studying popular culture. And also that music history does not so much revolve around solo artists but around studios/labels and regions. Excellent movie.

--Don't understand the ratings? Click here

On The Edge

On The Edge (John Carney, 2001)

Click here for the basics

Rating: Q=5, P=5 / Average OJ

Scale 1=2, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=2

Grief, Coping, Complex Relationships

Suicide, depression, and overpowering grief are not easy subjects to discuss well in film, but lots of films try. On The Edge does a good job, I think, of capturing everyone's need for friendship and someone who wants to listen. Recovery is not really an endpoint, it is a constantly evolving process. Cillian Murphy gives a semi-early, fabulous performance. Great soundtrack, too.

--Don't understand the ratings? Click here

Hunger

Hunger (Steve McQueen, 2008)

Click here for the basics

Rating: Q=6, P=5 / Average OJ

Scale 1=3, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=2

Northern Ireland, Crime, Political, Ethics/Philosophy, Hunger Strike

I found this film disturbing, gut-wrenching, and painful to watch. It's an important film because it shows a story that really happened, that happens time and time again, and one from which we should learn. There are few people like Bobby Sands and his comrades who have/had principles and beliefs so strong they would sacrifice their own lives in order to maybe bring change to a nation or the world. There are films about prison life, about political corruption, about dissension--but this one is different. This one is slow and quiet and excruciating, echoing the malnourished body of the protagonist. It is a film of visuals with little dialogue--beautiful and provocative. I can't recommend everyone to watch because it is quite upsetting.

--Don't understand the ratings? Click here