Author Archives: basiltsiokos

Coming to DVD via the Criterion Collection today, Tuesday, January 19:
ROLLING THUNDER REVUE: A BOB DYLAN STORY BY MARTIN SCORSESE

Director:
Martin Scorsese

Premiere:
Netflix (June 2019)

Select Festivals:
DOC NYC, Sydney

About:
Bob Dylan’s legendary tour from the mid-1970s is filtered through the Martin Scorsese’s distinctive lens.

The film screened as part of DOC NYC, for which our program notes read:
In 1975, Bob Dylan embarked on a two-year tour that became legendary. Now Martin Scorsese draws upon footage shot on that tour to create a documentary as unique as Dylan, with fictional elements interwoven. The film includes a parade of iconic figures including Allen Ginsberg, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, Gordon Lightfoot, and Patti Smith.

Coming to VOD today, Monday, January 18:
YUNG LEAN: IN MY HEAD

Director:
Henrik Burman

World Premiere:
Tribeca 2020 (unscreened)

Select Festivals:
Stockholm

About:
A portrait of the SoundCloud rapper.

Swedish teenager Jonatan Leandoer Håstad found inexplicable fame online, sharing his music on SoundCloud under the alias Yung Lean. Filmmaker Henrik Burman recounts Jonatan’s unusual emergence at the age of 15, and the darker side of fame for him and his Sad Boys crew. While boasting impressive access to his subject, the director constructs a fairly by the numbers surface portrait that will register chiefly with the artist’s fanbase and leave all others scratching their heads at what all the fuss is about.

Coming to virtual cinemas today, Friday, January 15:
FILM ABOUT A FATHER WHO

Director:
Lynne Sachs

World Premiere:
Slamdance 2020

Select Festivals:
Doc Fortnight, Sheffield, Docaviv, Doclisboa, RIDM, Indie Memphis, Sarasota

About:
The filmmaker attempts to make sense of her wayward father.

Named in homage to Yvonne Rainer’s FILM ABOUT A WOMAN WHO…, noted experimental filmmaker Lynne Sach’s constructs a study of her father, Ira Sachs Sr, from material shot over four decades. Ira, a hippie-turned-successful real-estate developer, was also an unrepentant womanizer, taking on younger lovers and producing more and more offspring, some kept secret from Lynne and her brother, Ira Jr, the acclaimed filmmaker. While the film is hardly experimental, its construction is somewhat fragmentary and decidedly personal, which initially makes it a bit difficult for the viewer, an outsider to this family affair, to engage. Despite this, the portrait that Lynne Sachs pieces together grows increasingly intriguing, not just of her father, but of his generation, and, really, of the broader idea of family.

Coming to DVD/VOD today, Friday, January 15:
MEAN MAN: THE STORY OF CHRIS HOLMES

Director:
Antoine de Montremy

World Premiere:
DVD/VOD release (January 2021)

About:
Former WASP guitarist Chris Holmes recounts his career while touring Europe.

Chris Holmes is a gruff, bearded, middle-aged rocker who currently lives in Cannes with his French wife, touring around Europe in his new band, Mean Man. His claim to fame is his on-again, off-again career with WASP, the hair metal band from the 1980s-90s. He, former bandmates, friends, and some family members relate Holmes’ background, how he got into music, his volatile relationship with WASP frontman Blackie Lawless, his relationship with ex-wife Lita Ford, how he struggled post-fame before sobering up, and his continuing career in Europe, where fans are still appreciative of his music and WASP background. Holmes is a straight-talking, no-frills guy, who seems meaner than he is but is kind to his fans and to his friends, but he unfortunately isn’t compelling enough to carry a whole film. While his existing fans may check out de Montremy’s film, its structure is too sloppy and repetitive to attract a wider audience.