I watched
this film a while ago during the Istanbul film festival. I loved it. The time
went by and my memories of it dimmed a bit. I still remembered it as good
though. Now, I shared this on my facebook page the other day so some of you may
remember this comment but here’s the thing. I was wrong. It isn’t good. It’s
f.cking brilliant. It’s the kind of film that makes you (well me anyway) run
out, buy everything Joy Division ever recorded and listen to it on a loop for
ever. And I would; only it wouldn’t be very practical. I will rant about why I
like Joy Division’s music and more specifically Ian Curtis’s singing in just a
sec. Let me tell you about the film first.
Ian Curtis
was a rather extraordinary teenager. He was just over six feet tall, very into
both reading and writing poetry (no doubt the birth of his lyrics later on) and
rather quiet. He had friends, went out from time to time, but didn’t talk much.
He met Debbie when they were in their late teens and by the time they were 18,
they were married, much to the surprise of his friends. When a few of the local
lads took him on as the lead singer of their band (then called Warsaw), they
didn’t expect him to change their lives. At rehearsals (and this is actually
quoting one of the band members) he just mumbled into the microphone barely
audible. But once they hit the stage… Ian’s booming voice took over the room.
His dancing (now a thing of legend) was incomprehensible to most who assumed
(wrongly, history teaches us) that he was very high on drugs. He was on a
natural high, lost in the music. Fame swept over Joy Division taking them to
heights they never expected. In the meanwhile, Ian was diagnosed with epilepsy
that doctors couldn’t seem to be able to help him with. He had a daughter now,
but his marriage broke down when he fell deeply in love with Annik a Belgian
embassy worker. And everything aside, Ian never wanted to be famous. Feeling
unable to control his health, his emotions or his career, Ian Curtis took his
own life, aged only 23 years old. Control is his story.
Corbjin,
originally a photographer of great fame, does a fantastic job in this film. And
his direction is only rivalled by Sam Riley’s performance, portraying the
awkward, sensitive, angst filled lead singer of Joy Division. The film shows a
Curtis torn between his responsibilities as a husband and father and his heart.
I am not generally speaking at all supportive of extra-marital affairs but one
can see how this happened. They were married so young. And then they grew up.
Debbie continued loving Ian, but Ian had a new life with his new found fame.
What is more, the film portrays his relationship with Annik as something very
deep and emotional, not just a “passing fad”. Could one blame him? I don’t think so.
The film
itself, shot in black and white, gives a very clear portrayal of the underlying
angst that dominated Curtis’s life and finally overcame him. The emotions are
so sensitively, artistically conveyed, I defy you to not feel literally
heart-broken by the end of the film. And the one other thing dominating the
film is it’s extraordinary soundtrack. Filled with all the classics by Joy
Division along with music from greats such as Bowie, Iggy Pop and the Sex
Pistols Control is a true trip back in time. And possibly a chance to discover
Joy Division. When I’m feeling down, when I’m confronted with a challenge I not
sure how I am going to overcome, I find there is something incredibly and
strangely cathartic about the music of Joy Division. Curtis’s singing, along
with the lyrics convey a certain sense of sadness. This cannot be likened, in
literary fashion, to a stormy sea. This thing is grey. It is dense. Like a fog,
only it grips at your throat. And it is no shape, no form, no end. For most of
us, the fog then slowly clears, for Curtis, it did not. But what makes me feel
good about his singing is that, to me, that is what sadness sounds like. I
don’t know what else to call it, but Ian knows. He gets it. And it’s very
cathartic to listen to his voice and know that he gets it. Or got it. And
knowing that someone else got it, always clears the fog for me. I am not sure if
that last paragraph makes a lot of sense to anyone but me. But I guess what I’m
trying to convey is that listening to Joy Division and watching Control are
very healing, soothing things for me. And this film matters to me, a lot. I
hope you enjoy it.
P.S. As an
interesting aside, it’s rather sweet to note that the actor who plays Ian, Sam
Riley and the actress playing Annik, Alexandra Maria Lara, started a
relationship after meeting on the set of the film five years ago and live
together in Berlin to this day…
Kayıtlar
Hiç yorum yok:
Yorum Gönder