Never Sorry paints Ai Weiwei by the numbers

Over the past few years, Chinese artist Ai Weiwei has become an international figure.  Though a significant part of that is due to his clever and challenging artwork (including the design of Beijing’s Olympic “Bird’s Nest” stadium), his prominence has largely grown thanks to his political activism that has seen him become a target of the communist Chinese government.  Alison Klayman’s debut film, Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry is a surface-scratching look at the life of a man who has created some big waves in his home country and has become a worldwide figure for freedom.  However, it is on that account that Ai deserves something more grand and daring than this introductory documentary.

Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry is out 10 August in the UK

What Klayman has produced with Never Sorry is something of an Ai Weiwei 101 beginner’s course.  It provides all the basic, need-to-know information of this fascinating and culturally relevant icon without ever diving too deeply into the larger issues around him or the relationships that form his world.  The audience is given glimpses of several of Ai’s 40-odd felines and is presented with an equally fluffy portrayal of the brave dissident.  The artist’s involvement in the aftermath of the Sichuan earthquake in 2008 is detailed, as is the impact  Ai’s efforts (to reveal the names and numbers of the killed children) had on the people and officials of China.  From there the documentary bounces around, as it sees Ai being assaulted by a police officer, followed by repercussions including brain surgery and a lawsuit.  Preparation for his 2009 show in Munich entitled “So Sorry” is also laid out, focusing primarily on the exhibition’s façade where Ai used thousands of backpacks to create a tribute to the lost children of Sichuan’s earthquake.  Never Sorry then jumps back to his years spent in New York City in the 1980s and early 90s. All of this in interesting enough, but there is precious little that reveals what might make Ai tick.

The Imposter is a genuine cinematic triumph

“No one ever gave a damn about me… I was reborn.”

So explains the man at the centre of one of the most bizarre cases of identity theft to ever occur; as superbly documented and re-enacted in documentarian Bart Layton’s debut feature-length film The Imposter.  This story of a Frenchman who passed himself off as a Texas family’s missing teenage son in 1997 presents a series of events too unbelievable for fiction.  In The Imposter, the astounding tale is recounted by, not only the victimised family, but the actual imposter himself, Frédéric Bourdin, in amazing detail.  What is revealed is a real-life thriller as gripping as any film to hit the big screen this year.

The scene is set by a brief explanation of how 13-year old Nicholas Barclay went missing on his way home late one night in 1994.  Grainy home video footage provides glimpses of the boy who, it had seemed at the time, would miraculously be found in Spain three years later.  The audacious Bourdin narrates his side of the story, as actors portray the events he describes.  Carey Gibson, Nicholas’ older sister, provides her take on the matter, as the family member most responsible for the return of “Nicholas” to the US.  Interviews with other relatives- including his mother, an FBI special agent, a US consul, and a private detective are all expertly weaved into the fabric of Layton’s documentary.  The level of candour exhibited by Bourdin is simply astonishing, as the man exposes himself to be a textbook psychopath.  However, what Bourdin may lack in remorse, he makes up for in shameless honesty, fully explaining his motivations and thought processes behind his cruel ruse.  While The Imposter is very much about how this one, deeply disturbed man managed to pull off such a remarkable con, a jaw-dropping twist to this already shocking story awaits.

Kevin Macdonald’s Marley is iron like a lion in Zion

While there have been no shortages on Bob Marley documentaries, it’s only now, with the arrival of Academy Award winning film-maker Kevin Macdonald’s Marley, that the whole, true story of the reggae legend can finally be told, over 30 years after his untimely death.  Yes, Marley is touted as the definite Bob Marley doc, but be assured, this is not hyperbole.  Marley is comprehensive and leaves no stone unturned as it explores the life of this internationally iconic superstar.

Marley takes centre stage on 20 April in UK cinemas

All that reggae aficionados need to know about Marley is that Macdonald has scored a major coup in getting the notoriously elusive and secretive Bunny Wailer to open up on camera about growing up with Bob and their time together as The Wailers.  His insight is pivotal in filling in the remarkably vast blanks of Bob Marley’s early years.  Along with well-worn footage and of photos of Marley, Macdonald has unearthed more than a handful of rare gems including the earliest known photo of the musician as a young adult. Remarkably, not a single photo of him as a child is known to exist.  The film also focuses on Marley’s mixed raced origins and his absent father, a white English man named Norval Marley who is spoken of by those who knew him.  Bob would not be the only mixed race child Norval would father.  Macdonald commits an absolute masterstroke in introducing Marley’s half-sister to the story behind his song “Cornerstone”.  The story and her reaction epitomises the drive and determination that have helped endear Bob Marley to millions around the world.

New documentary highlights an ongoing showdown: Khodorkovsky vs Putin vs Justice

When German filmmaker Cyril Tuschi set out to create a dramatised portrayal of Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s life, he found that the real story behind is rise and eventual imprisonment was far more fascinating than anything he could spin.  He went on to spend over five years being researching the story and interviewing those involved (minus any statement from the Kremlin, of course), in attempt to present an accurate portrait of this controversial figure.  Khodorkovsky is the unfinished, finished work as the subject still sits in a Siberian prison while Vladimir Putin celebrates victory in a presidential election marred by claims of fraud.

Khodorkovsky is now in cinemas and available on demand online

Opening with a creeping panoramic view of snow-covered Russian oil fields, the film switches to a stylish black and white animated sequence illustrating Khodorkovsky’s arrest on board his private jet by Russian special forces.  Tuschi sheds light on Khodorkovsky’s communist background and how the neo-liberal became the face of capitalism in Russia thanks to ownership of banking enterprise Menatep and petroleum company Yukos.  Becoming Russia’s richest man thanks to corruption at government level, Khodorkovsky went on to bite the hand that fed him, angering Putin in the process, and openly supported the opposition parties.  Tuschi’s documentary spends time with former business partners of Khodorkovsky, his first wife, his oldest son and various politicians (as well as a surprise appearance from a hungry hippopotamus) as letters from the imprisoned oligarch himself enables Khodorkovsky to give his side of the story.

Review: The Last Waltz (re-release)

Hugo isn’t the only chance to catch the brilliance of Martin Scorsese this weekend, as today sees the re-release of his beautifully restored rock documentary The Last Waltz which focuses on the final concert put on by the original line-up of The Band.  The film primarily consists of full performances from this celebratory gig loaded with guest appearances by some of the most legendary and influential figures in rock, including Neil Young, Van Morrison, Joni Mitchell, Eric Clapton and Bob Dylan, amongst many others.  Interspersed between the songs are interviews with members of The Band, guided by Scorsese’s direct questioning.

The Last Waltz of The Band can be seen at the BFI Southbank from 2 December

For those with a taste for classic rock, regardless of how familiar one may be with The Band itself, there is a lot to enjoy here.  Scorsese takes an understated approach in the straightforward filming of the 1976 concert.  The angles and shots are maintained for long periods of time and illustrate a stark contrast to the flashy camera work and editing used in similar films today.  The emphasis is very much on the music itself and the performers.  On that note, The Last Waltz is filled with great collaborations and performances.  From a soulful soundstage rendition of “The Weight” to Neil Young’s “Helpless” with Joni Mitchell providing back-up vocals from the side-stage shadows to the all-star jam of “I Shall Be Released” there is plenty for classic rock fans to soak up.

Review: Page One: Inside The New York Times

Andrew Rossi’s latest documentary, Page One: Inside The New York Times examines the struggle print media faces for survival by embedding the filmmaker within the Times newsroom for an entire year, from 2009 into 2010.  Focus centres on the media desk of the NYT, which reports on changes in the media, both print and online, including the NYT itself. The star of the show here is charismatic New York Times journalist David Carr, a sharp-tongued, reformed drug addict and convict whose wit makes this an enjoyable, rather than dry, affair.

The New York Times' David Carr discusses the survival of the Gray lady at the Soho Curzon

A montage of news clips highlighting newspapers closures and bankruptcy opens the film by providing the context of the difficult period print media, specifically in the US, is currently facing.  The point of how any person or group can self-publish monumental news scoops thanks to the internet is illustrated by juxtaposing WikiLeaks first significant exposure of the US military strategy in Iraq (video footage of US attacks on civilians) with the Pentagon Papers scandal in 1971, where the only method of bringing attention to the information contained was by feeding it to a huge national paper, such as the New York Times.

Review: Pearl Jam Twenty

Disclaimer: Perhaps the most consistent aspect of my life has been Pearl Jam.  I grew up on them and their music and attitudes helped shape me into the person I am to this day.  I’ve followed them on tour and can even be glimpsed in the film I’m about to review, so it’d be foolish to think I can approach this with a completely objective point of view.  However, I feel that I am able to consider this film from both a fan’s perspective of both the band and film-making.

The stars of Pearl Jam Twenty

Cameron Crowe’s Pearl Jam documentary, aptly titled Pearl Jam Twenty has been screened at cinemas world-wide on 20 September 2011 in its theatrical two-hour form (with a four-hour version to be released on DVD/Blu-ray).  Using battered old VHS footage, the film tracks Pearl Jam from years prior to conception to 2010.  The paths of Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament from Green River to Mother Love Bone and finally to Mookie Blaylock (adopting the Pearl Jam moniker soon after being legally forced to abandon the basketballer’s name) are documented well.  Special tribute is paid to Mother Love Bone frontman Andrew Wood, who tragically passed away following a heroin overdose in 1990.

Review: Sound It Out

Tonight Soho Curzon hosted a screening of Jeanie Finlay’s “love-hate note” to Teesside Sound It Out. Her documentary focuses on the cultural hub of Stockton, the last remaining independent record store in the north-east and namesake of the film.  Here the audience is introduced to shop proprietor Tom, his faithful staff of two and various local regulars.  The stereotypical vinyl geeks are well represented here and Tom explains that 99% of his record purchasers are of the less-fair sex- “Boys don’t wanna grow up” he theorises.  Unfortunately, the film doesn’t delve much deeper than this.  He later offers up the less-than-groundbreaking revelation that music acts as a release for his customers.