Blur: To the End is a documentary that takes fans behind the scenes of Blur’s long-awaited return to the studio to record their first album in over a decade. The film captures the band’s journey, from their reunion in Hong Kong to the creative process of making new music, offering a mix of nostalgia, humour, and candid moments.
Those looking for a 101 on Blur’s history or surprise revelations of previously unknown secrets from the band’s past will have to look elsewhere. This movie is for lifelong fans. It’s not an introduction to Blur or the band members. It’s for fans who know the mythos and are excited to tune in for the latest chapter.
Though the documentary focused on the lead-up to the new tour and the creation of the new album, the audience gets a peak behind the scenes at the surprisingly calm creative process of talented people with a complicated history. A group of people who love the music and want to keep feeding that love, in whatever form it may take.
While the film gives little context as to how the band met or how they bounded, many nostalgia-filled stories are exchanged between the members as though they are catching up over a pint in a pub. Continuously rewarding the long-term fans of Blur, fans who will be excited to see welcomed along to this next chapter.
The film has a very intimate feel, even for a documentary. The audience is shown the band members’ homes, where the bandmates wear their comfort with each other casually. This does mean that the tone can lean oddly morbid at times. When they are philosophising about life and their relationships, it feels like an end-of-life reflection rather than an acknowledgement of a midpoint. The mid-50s might not be the prime rockstar age, but 50 is far from the end of their musical life.
Given the zeitgeists piqued interest in Brit-pop, with the oft-talked-about Oasis reunion on the horizon, it seems like a missed opportunity not to explore the musical impact Blur had in leading the British bands of the ’90s. Instead, the focus is where they are now, only looking forward.
Truly what you glean from this film is that it is hard to be in a band. It’s much like a family. You all love one thing, but personal dynamics can often get in the way.
To be this successful and this creative after a long and turbulent time together is no small feat. What we see is a group of people who have a genuine love for each other and the music. Gone are the glitz, the glamour, the tension of early rock and roll-dom. Here, you get to join some old mates catching up over Victoria Sponge.
This is a story about a very unsure, depressed, anxious young man who just happened to form the greatest rock and roll band of all time.
I’m a fan. I’ve been a fan of The Rolling Stones since I can remember. Like The Beatles, they’ve always been in my orbit. As a child of the 90s and 00s growing up with parents who were children of the 60s and 70s, their music was always in the atmosphere. I’ve watched the documentaries, read the authorised biographies, Keith’s immense book “Life”, and the unauthorised ones. I’ve screenshotted the photos for the fashion and bought the Stones t-shirts.
Mick and Keith were childhood friends who bumped into each other at a train station when they were teenagers. Keith was going to art school at the time, and Mick was studying at the London School of Economics. Keith spied a couple of records Mick had under his arm. A Muddy Waters LP and Chuck Berry’s greatest hits were all it took for the greatest rock and roll duos to come together. The glimmer twins were born.
Mick and Keith started hanging out at the jazz bars in London, where they met Charlie Watts and Brian Jones. The boys formed a band. They advertised for a bass player, and Bill Wyman answered the call. And then the well-known dot points that go something like;
An English cover band for American Rhythm and Blues, hanging with the Beatles, Satisfaction, Marianne Faithful, drug busts, rock and roll circus, Sympathy for the Devil, Anita Pallenberg, Brian dies, Mick Taylor joins, Hyde Park, Hells Angels, exiled in France; Bianca Jagger, more drug busts, fashion, America, Keith arrested in Canada, rehabilitated, Ronnie Wood, stadium band, middle-aged rockers, Jerry Hall, older rockers, greatest hits albums, Sir Mick, Martin Scorsese, crossfire hurricane, 50th anniversary, tour tour tour, Charlie passes away. And here we are in the present.
Brian Jones has always been a dot point in music history.
For a band that’s been going on for as long as the stones have, 2024 coming up to 62 years – they’re official date of conception being 1962 – the interest in their story, music and the passion of their fans is a beautiful thing. They continue to be the soundtrack to countless generations, producing a best-selling studio album as recent as 2023, Hackney Diamonds. The Rolling Stones have always been relevant. It’s hard to think of them as new and up-and-coming. Especially with the inclusion of Bill Wyman in the documentary, now an old man in his 80s.
Brian Jones and the Stones is not an in-depth portrait compared to others, like “Crossfire Hurricane,” but it does give an intriguing look at Brian Jones.
I knew Brian was the catalyst in getting the stones together, and I knew he came up with the name after Muddy Water’s song “Rollin’ Stone” This was his vision for The Rolling Stones, being a cover band of Muddy Water, Howlin’ Wolf, Robert Johnson. It’s not a pop band performing their own compositions about Satisfaction or Jumping Jack Flash. Which is such a crazy notion for us fans. You can see why Mick and Keith and the rest of the band couldn’t see Brian’s blinkered view on this. The Stones were hit makers, no question about that. And I wouldn’t be so brash as to call Beggars Banquet or Between the Buttons ‘pop’. This is Rock, albeit popular rock.
Through this film, Brian’s complexities are explored in a melancholy way. Many friends and comrades describe him as a sweet guy, an immensely talented musician, and a gentleman. And then, as success grows, money comes in, opportunities for debauchery come, and his other side comes to the fore. He was a complicated guy before being a Rolling Stone.
His parents kicked him out as a young man for getting his girlfriend pregnant. And a pattern emerges. He charms his way into the homes and families of each new girlfriend he acquires before he is 25—five on the filmmaker’s count. Five children were born to five different women. The first is put up for adoption. The film takes the girls’ point of view as the narrators of Brian’s story, which is a great take, I think. The love he showed them mixed with the abandonment. He’d move in with the girlfriend’s family, get her pregnant and casually move on. Back on tour, back as a Rolling Stone.
One of his girlfriends describes him as a gentleman who would open doors for her and be loving. “When he met my mother, he kissed her hand. Who does that?” Well, most people would say a guy who knows how to play the field does that. A guy who was without a home or loving family and needed one to live with. Sadly.
One unhappy tale comes from Linda Lawrence, mother of his son Julian. Linda needed money from Brian, raising their son on her own, and Brian just laughed at her from his balcony. Brian was with Anita Pallenberg by this time. Perhaps not the best influence on a guy with crippling low self-esteem. Anita Pallenberg, who later went on to date and have children with Keith Richards, is no shrinking violet.
Humans all have the capability of good and evil, and Linda believes that Anita Pallenberg brought out Brian’s vicious side—teasing people and spiking their drinks. When you mix that with fame, money, every available drug in his system, and his band growing tired of his moods and unreliability, Brian’s fate feels like a foregone conclusion.
This is a documentary for the fans. Vintage Stones on the big screen. Their early, unpolished performances in black and white in little theatres across England and Europe, Mick Jagger becoming THE Mick Jagger, singing in a turtleneck jumper, well before the jumpsuits and lavish costumes. We’re taken back to London in the 60’s, a promised land that will always be rhapsodised and always looks cool to those of us who were never there.
Brian was a lost soul with a glimmer of hope to reach his full potential with the stones. A boy who longed for his parents’ approval, the parents who kicked him out before he was making money. When the drug busts were happening in 1967, Brian sent a note to his parents asking, “please don’t think badly of me”. Heartbreaking. Especially with the letter from his father found years after Brains death.
Brian needed to escape something: a pain, a deep insecurity, the five children he had but didn’t know, the girls he abandoned. And drugs were his way to do that. I came away feeling not in awe, just desperately sad for him. An interviewer asks him about his songwriting. You see Mick and Keith stop their pretend chatting in the background and shoot their gaze over to see what Brian was going to say. To Brian’s credit he says it’s not him who writes the hits, it’s Mick and Keith.
“What would you do differently now that you know how hard you have to work?” is the next question for Brian. “I’d do it all the same, 100 times over.”
Brian Jones. Gone but not forgotten.
The British Film Festival 2024 runs from Nov – Dec 8. To book tickets to this or other films click https://britishfilmfestival.com.au/ for session and venue details.
“This Time Next Year” isn’t just your average romantic comedy; it’s a delightful romp that delivers laughs while diving deeper into the messy, complicated nature of love and life.
From the outset, we’re treated to a parade of the main protagonists unfortunate but hilarious misadventures, that will have you chuckling and cringing in equal measure, culminating in Minnie Cooper, yes you read it correctly, Minnie Cooper, being locked in a bathroom as the clock strikes midnight on New Years eve.
Enter the damsels rescuer, Quinn, played by the swoon-worthy Lucien Laviscount, whose charm and good looks sweep Minnie off her feet, igniting all those classic rom-com butterflies. But hold on! While the sparks fly, the film quickly reveals it’s not just about the surface-level romance.
Quinn, it turns out, has a backstory that adds layers to his character. He’s not just a pretty face; he’s grappling with the responsibilities of caring for his mentally ill mother, a weight that has forced him to mature in ways that have affected who he is at his core.
Meanwhile, our unlucky-in-love heroine is battling her own demons—a boyfriend who’s more of a nightmare and a business that’s gone belly-up, all while dealing with the nagging feeling that life just isn’t on her side – a destiny predicted to her at birth by her own mother. A destiny she seems to fulfill at every turn.
The film tries to cover a lot of ground, fixing friendships, unwell mothers, failed businesses and broken hearts along the way, often leaving the romantic elements simmering on the back burner for a lot of its 2 hour duration. Yet, the cast shines with a remarkable chemistry that’s impossible to ignore. Sophie Cookson (known for “Kingsman: The Secret Service”) and Laviscount (of “Emily in Paris” fame) expertly dance around their characters’ undeniable attraction, offering moments that recall the delightful awkwardness of “Bridget Jones’s Diary” in a number of scenes that leave you in stitches.
As the story unfolds, the pace may meander a bit, but it ultimately builds toward a satisfying end. Spoiler alert: there’s a fireworks-filled climax that makes the wait worthwhile.
In the end, “This Time Next Year” is a charming, if slightly slow, romantic comedy that’s worth a watch—even if it’s just for the shirtless scenes of the leading man. Whether you’re here for the laughs, the love story, or just to enjoy some eye candy, this film delivers a heartwarming experience that will leave you smiling.
The British Film Festival 2024 runs from Nov – Dec 8.
The film “Blur: Live at Wembley Stadium,” directed by Tony L, is a concert film that shows the well-loved alternative/rock band Blur performing their songs to hundreds in Wembley. The sense of camaraderie, love of their music, and craft were evident in every number and every shot.
The guitar, piano and drums were amazing to watch and skillfully played. The vocals, while not the conventional vocal style of many pop artists, suited the genre quite well and reminded me of other bands such as The Killers and Coldplay (if they played grungy rock). Whether it be due to the sound mix quality of the film itself or the stage sound mix, it was difficult to understand what the lead vocalist was saying sometimes. Despite this, it was clear that they held their own and seamlessly lead each song with talent and professionalism. Transitions were well done and on point. All solos worked well and provided the right amount of dynamics to draw in the audience.
The shots and colours were fairly high quality and offered inviting and attractive visuals. The use of space onstage was creative and took advantage of the size of the stage. The use of lighting and contemporary stage design added to the aesthetic and complimented the music genre well. Purple, orange, and blue filters over the projections of the band members added a very 90s aesthetic, which I enjoyed.
Their use of props was especially interesting and uniquely added character to the show. For example, the use of megaphones and tall cardboard cut out of a polar bear. This also contributed to interesting musical dynamics in that the siren on the bear’s megaphone was turned on during the end of one of the songs and complimented it very well. Lighting was also cleverly placed at this point. It is clear that a live show was especially important to them, and the work they put into engaging the audience in these ways was impressive, and amusing and expressed the band’s personality well.
Audience interaction and inclusion in the film added a sense of community surrounding the band and the experience. The clapping in unison at the beginning of their fourth song was a great example of this. Another was the request of the mask of Darren to be put on. many in the crowd placed a mask over their face and raved along to the relevant song, which the lead guitarist led vocally. Hearing the crowd sing along and added a wholesome vibe to the show.
An understandable note I have was the presence of two men in white coats, adjusting instruments and amps on stage during songs. While it makes sense that there would be people to help with this, it seemed disruptive on more than one occasion. Some of the shots were good quality, but slightly spoiled by the running back and forth of the stagehands/roadies. One of which, almost got hit in the face by a guitar a few times, which I found concerning.
At one stage, towards the end of a song, it seemed something had gone wrong with one of the instruments or pedals because the lead guitar cut out, and the lead vocalist requested the audience sing acapella with them instead. The lead guitarist initially seemed nervous about the issue but was soon comforted by the seamless way everyone rallied to finish the song. It was a beautiful moment, whether intended or not, that became one of my favourite moments in the film.
At every moment, Blur showed that they, without a doubt, know how to put on a show. Yes, time may have passed, but this show is TIMELESS.
The British Film Festival 2024 runs from Nov – Dec 8.
