20,000 Days on Earth (2014)

From my favorite movies..

Dreadfully Boring

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

For better or worse, I've always placed Nick Cave within my "men in black" subgenre. Defining characteristics of these musicians include distinctive baritones, poetic lyrics, sunglasses, cool detachment, interesting hair and - of course - black clothing. Other members include Roy Orbison, Scott Walker, The Doors, Echo & the Bunnymen, The Stranglers, The Sisters of Mercy, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Tindersticks, and the genre godfather - Johnny Cash. Troubled troubadours, drugs, fisticuffs, rivalries, commercial suicide and near self-destruction are unfortunate traits of this motley crew. If you're not a fan, you may consider these artists inaccessible, pretentious, self- indulgent doom-mongers. What's surprising about 20,000 Days On Earth is that directors Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard have managed to peel back layer after layer of Nick Cave's dark, mysterious facade to reveal an open, honest, sympathetic, and refreshingly down-to-Earth artist. Even more surprising is the way they go about it.The press kit heralds their "inventive, lyrical ode to creativity and an intimate examination of the artistic process of musician and cultural icon Nick Cave" fusing "drama and documentary, weaving a staged day in Cave's life with never-before-seen verité observation of his creative cycle." This threatens pretension à la Jean Luc Godard's misguided Sympathy For The Devil. However, the film remains remarkably accessible despite these lofty claims. More surprising still, Cave manages to make Brighton seem cool - by his presence alone.The opening scene of Cave awakening next to his wife may look familiar; it's shot in the same bedroom gracing the cover of his most recent release - the eerie, atmospheric Push The Sky Away (the distinctive blinds give it away). The film captures several souls who have walked the line with Cave. While she is not interviewed, Cave's wife Susie Bick is very much present. She appeared nude on the striking black and white cover of Push The Sky Away. Perhaps Cave marrying a model is the one rock and roll cliché we can allow this otherwise elusive, unpredictable man; although Bick's past as the cover model on The Damned's LP Phantasmagoria suggests that she was always the perfect match for Cave. Cave's sons also appear briefly (enjoying pizza and a film with their gothfather). While access to Cave's family is limited, the film spends ample time with Cave's regular musical collaborator Warren Ellis; actor Ray Winstone; and one-time collaborator Kylie Minogue, who could use more exposure. Some of these souls join Cave on subtly surreal car rides along the streets of Brighton. Surprising omissions from the world of international cinema include Cave fan Wim Wenders (e.g. Wings of Desire) and regular Cave collaborator John Hillcoat (stretching from 1988's Ghosts... of the Civil Dead to 2012's Lawless); but this breezy film is already packed with more than enough character detail. Still, would have been great to revisit Cave's thoughts on his scene-stealing turn as Freak Storm in Johnny Suede - the directorial debut of Tom DiCillo and one of Brad Pitt's early starring roles.Avoiding the obvious and predictable, Forsyth and Pollard take us on a journey through Cave's memories via mementos from his personal archive - almost Kubrick-like in its scope and attention to detail. One of the film's best moments is Cave's droll, matter-of-fact account of a 'transformative' Nina Simone performance. Placed on the mercy seat, Cave opens up to a psychoanalyst as he discusses how his early years continue to inform his work. Here 20,000 Days dives 20,000 leagues into Cave's subconscious. Expecting a dark descent into a swirling, solipsistic maelstrom of madness and regret? Think again. On this occasion, Cave is relaxed, genial, and forthright. Of course, in addition to the Cave exploring, 20,000 Days On Earth contains electrifying performances and behind-the-scenes studio footage that will delight die-hard fans of both Nick Cave and Lionel Richie.The degree of intimacy throughout 20,000 Days On Earth would not have been possible with a more mainstream artist. Cave is the perfect subject - popular enough to be interesting, yet mysterious enough to warrant further exploration. The film's unique approach and sensitivity to its subject may be due to the man and woman directorial team, offering us a more balanced view of Cave. Of course, it also helps that Forsyth and Pollard worked with Cave in the past.Ultimately, the mark of a great music documentary is what you do when the film ends. If you start rummaging through old vinyl, CDs, or digital files to satisfy a certain curiosity - then it worked. 20,000 Days on Earth made me crave some Cave. Thus, as I listen to Push The Sky Away, I recall that mesmerising final image of Nick Cave, alone on the darkened Brighton shoreline. The camera gently floats away, leaving Cave behind. Lucky for us, he missed the boatman's call. Brighton remains cool.

If there's one thing this film stands out for, it's its originality. The idea to make a portrait of a rock musician by filming his 20.000th day on earth is quite unique, and it works well. After spending 24 hours with Nick Cave (crammed into 97 minutes, of course), you think you know the man a lot better than you did before. We see Cave waking up, visiting his psychiatrist to whom he tells a lot about his childhood memories, visiting the studio where he rehearses and jams with his fellow musicians, and visiting an archive where he remembers the days with his former band The Birthday Party, and shows pictures about the various stages in his career. In between, we see him driving around Brighton, chatting with some 'ghost passengers' from his past, including Blixa Bargeld and Kylie Minogue. It is quite entertaining and original. But it's also a bit self-indulgent, because this is not really a 'fly-on-the-wall' documentary, but a fully scripted and rehearsed fictional film. To hear Cave philosophizing about his work as if it's something out of his own control, comes across as a bit over the top. These are rock songs, for heaven's sake, not literature! (Although Cave might argue that these two categories don't exclude each other). So my feelings about this film are a bit mixed. On the one hand, it's a nice way to dig into the soul of a rock singer, on the other hand you've got to be really interested in the person Nick Cave to enjoy the whole movie from start to finish.

The only thing I've been introduced with when it comes to Nick Cave is his score for The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, which is pretty much my favorite film score ever. Such soothing, haunting, mesmerizing music. In many ways, this film is exactly like that. I always find it interesting when filmmakers play around with what a documentary really is, and this does just that. It's very melancholic in its tone, very introspective. It has fascinating examples of music being created and just how much Cave puts himself into his music, while still balancing it all and not coming off like an ego project. Even for non-fans this is recommended.

The world abounds with concert films and other documentaries with no greater ambition than following a famous person around for a while. These films are usually easy to put in the "superfans only" category. But maybe that wouldn't be the case if they were more like 20, 000 Days on Earth. All I can say is that, as someone who has one Nick Cave album but no vast devotion to the guy, I was entertained throughout.Part of this is simply the beauty of the images -- the directors make even the most mundane scene stun on the screen. The film takes place across one mostly ordinary day in Nick Cave's life, purportedly the 20000th, and much of the runtime is taken up by fascinating conversations Cave has with friends and collaborators. There are a lot of stagey scenes that don't hide their constructedness, such as a filmed therapy session, or a meta- cinematic moment where at the behest of the film's producers Cage goes through old pictures that will soon become part of the opening montage. And then there is the obligatory concert footage, shot in a dynamic fashion that manages to pick up all of Cave's subtle interactions with the front row and the looks of desperate adoration on the audience's faces.All of this would be for naught if Cave wasn't a fascinating subject. He plays the brooding poet here, providing ominous narration throughout the film, but there are also humanizing scenes where he watches TV with his sons or grumpily bosses around a children's choir (one of the more surreal moments here). It may be more charisma than intellect, but damn if I couldn't listen to Nick Cave talk for days. For all the directorial skill brought to 20, 000 Days on Earth, its greatest virtue may be in simply allowing us to experience two hours of Cave.