Uncomfortable week at the Cinema.
Something told me I had to seek out the documentary on Amy Winehouse and Love & Mercy, a dual portrait of Brian Wilson from two eras of his life.
I always felt that I would be most uncomfortable about the Amy biog, so I visited the Empire Cinema first, mid afternoon. It meant I was making most use of my day bus pass and filling out an already busy day.
The film had been filtered into one of the Empire's Studio cinema, which tends to mean either limited interest or coming to the end of it's popular run. Four rows of seats & a screen probably too close for my liking.
Family footage, audio recordings and inserts of pertinent locations in the Amy story made up the core of the documentary. It was easy to fall in love with her youthful exuberance but by the time we had got to her dependence on booze instead of drugs, I found myself losing interest. Her mother seemed to play little part in proceedings and her taxi driving father was portrayed as something of an opportunist in making a dollar at Amy's expense. Some lovely footage of an awkward meet with Tony Bennett in the studio as she came across one of her idols and her initial enjoyment at just singing, were outweighed by her decline on stage as her predictions of not wanting fame & what goes with it, came to fruition. If it wasn't for that voice, I don't think I would watched much more but something tells me that I maybe researching adversity.
The following day I took the opportunity to see Love & Mercy at my beloved Tyneside Cinema. My sister was good enough to go with me & yet I feared for her enjoyment. Brian Wilson was portrayed by two actors, one of which was John Cusack(no doubt adding some box office appeal to the picture) Early recordings through to Pet Sounds & Smile were handled by an actor new to me, Paul Dano
Very good; struggling with an aggressive father and the demands of the band to return to the successful surfing sound that had served them so well up to now. Enter the sycophants who tell him to pursue his dreams & by the way, here's some stuff to ease the pain. The intertwined second portion of the film is John Cusack in the clutches of one Eugene Landy, played wonderfully by Paul Giamatti, whilst trying to establish a relationship with Melissa, a former model turned car salesperson that would ultimately set him free. The pain & the hurt seemed never ending & I couldn't help compare & contrast with my current situation. I came preciously close to walking out, such was the awkward nature of the journey. It is a commendable film, how accurate I don't know, but its uncomfortable entertainment, if that's not a misnomer.
