Entertaining, engrossing, and educational, it’s hard not to leave James Mangold’s (3:10 to Yuma, Ford v Ferrari) A Complete Unknown disappointed. While many will call it a paint-by-numbers musical biopic (which is completely justified), it does three things that recent films, such as Bob Marley: One Love, Rocketman (Elton John), Back to Black (Amy Winehouse), Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody, and Elvis couldn’t do. It held my interest throughout its 140-minute runtime. It implored me to read Bob Dylan’s Wikipedia page. It led to an interest in looking up the songs performed in the film that I had not heard before. The musical biopic genre has been bad for nearly 20 years (Bohemian Rhapsody and Straight Outta Compton are outliers). A Complete Unknown feels like a companion piece to two fabulous turn-of-the-century musical biopics with terrific lead performances in 2004’s Ray (Jaime Foxx as Ray Charles) and Walk the Line (Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash). Each film landed the lead performer an Oscar nomination, including a win for Foxx.
Category Archives: Based on a True Story
Woman of the Hour (2023)
In her directorial debut, Anna Kendrick (Alice, Darling, Up in the Air) displays a knack for her work behind the camera, rivaling her ability to perform in front of it. Her insights into the powerful, disturbing, and thought-provoking film Woman of the Hour, a film about the murders committed by Rodney Alcala (Daniel Zovatto – Lady Bird, Don’t Breathe), a serial killer who appeared on a 1978 episode of “The Dating Game” in the middle of his killing spree years.
The Promised Land (2023)
Killers of the Flower Moon meets Braveheart with elements of The Patriot and The Revenant? I’m unsure where Nikolaj Arcel’s (A Royal Affair, The Dark Tower) The Promised Land falls when compared to these four powerhouse movies. It has elements of each of these films, yet still feels wholly unique. When Mads Mikkelsen (The Hunt, Another Round) is the lead actor, especially in independent movies, particularly those filmed in his native Danish language, it’s a near guarantee that the film will be great.
Ferrari (2023)
2023 has been the year of the biopic. The year may be the successful blueprint that could ignite a trend. Each year, several biopics are released. Some are good. Some are not. In 2023, it has often felt like a new biopic was set for release each week. Some of the better ones were The Iron Claw, Dumb Money, Oppenheimer, Blackberry, Tetris, Maestro, Air, and Sound of Freedom. At some point, there was biopic overload, with films like Golda, Big George Foreman, Rise, Chevalier, Rustin, and Nyad getting lost in the shuffle. Rustin and Nyad are receiving Oscar Buzz for leading acting performances. Yet, if not for this recognition, each film likely would have been missed by the public without even knowing the film existed.
Maestro (2023)
Each year, a handful of movies are made in a way that is less interested in audience consumption or interest and more in earning awards. The term for this is “Oscar bait.” The 2023-released movie most associated with this term is Bradley Cooper’s (A Star Is Born) sophomore directorial effort, Maestro. It will earn a few Oscars. Cooper might even earn one for Best Director. He’s likelier to earn one for Best Lead Actor for portraying the title character, Leonard Bernstein.