Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man
I have been a fan of Leonard Cohen's for nearly 40 years. I first heard his song Suzanne sung by Judy Collins and that prompted me to buy his first album The Songs of Leonard Cohen, his books of poetry and his novel Beautiful Losers (which I would still love to see made into a film). His words are magical and the only songwriter that could rival him is Bob Dylan (I see them as two sides of the same coin). So you can imagine my excitement when I heard about this documentary.
A good part of the film comes from the 2005 concert Came So Far For Beauty: An Evening Of Songs By Leonard Cohen which was held in Sydney and produced by Hal Willner. The performers include Nick Cave, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Rufus Wainwright, Martha Wainwright, Linda Thompson and Antony. Some of the songs performed were Hallelujah, Sisters of Mercy, I'm Your Man and Suzanne. At first I was a bit apprehensive about seeing a film with so many singers other than Cohen performing. But I found their renditions very moving and they served Cohen's words and music well.
The rest of the film contains interviews with some of the above mentioned artists as well as Bono and Edge of U2 and Cohen himself. Bono is right when he says that Leonard Cohen is with you during all the important and challenging times in your life. Cohen sheds quite a bit of info about his childhood (complete with pictures), his writing and his spirituality with us. He reveals just how vulnerable he is when he mentions that despite his reputation as a ladies man he has spent thousands of nights alone. His vulnerability comes through in his writing. The highlight of the film is at the end when Cohen, backed by U2, sings Tower of Song. It was quite a mesmerizing performance.
Lian Lunson does a very good job of directing the film. She makes the transition from music to interviews and back flow very smoothly. I was surprised to find out that one of the producers is Mel Gibson but he is a very big Leonard Cohen fan and his input can only help the film gain recognition. I love this film and I am heartened by the numbers of people who are going to see it.
This film reinforces something that I have known for a long time - there is no one like Leonard Cohen and it is privilege to have "known" him for all of these years.
A good part of the film comes from the 2005 concert Came So Far For Beauty: An Evening Of Songs By Leonard Cohen which was held in Sydney and produced by Hal Willner. The performers include Nick Cave, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, Rufus Wainwright, Martha Wainwright, Linda Thompson and Antony. Some of the songs performed were Hallelujah, Sisters of Mercy, I'm Your Man and Suzanne. At first I was a bit apprehensive about seeing a film with so many singers other than Cohen performing. But I found their renditions very moving and they served Cohen's words and music well.
The rest of the film contains interviews with some of the above mentioned artists as well as Bono and Edge of U2 and Cohen himself. Bono is right when he says that Leonard Cohen is with you during all the important and challenging times in your life. Cohen sheds quite a bit of info about his childhood (complete with pictures), his writing and his spirituality with us. He reveals just how vulnerable he is when he mentions that despite his reputation as a ladies man he has spent thousands of nights alone. His vulnerability comes through in his writing. The highlight of the film is at the end when Cohen, backed by U2, sings Tower of Song. It was quite a mesmerizing performance.
Lian Lunson does a very good job of directing the film. She makes the transition from music to interviews and back flow very smoothly. I was surprised to find out that one of the producers is Mel Gibson but he is a very big Leonard Cohen fan and his input can only help the film gain recognition. I love this film and I am heartened by the numbers of people who are going to see it.
This film reinforces something that I have known for a long time - there is no one like Leonard Cohen and it is privilege to have "known" him for all of these years.
posted by Film Fanatic | 6:31 AM
1 Comments:
Yes, The Master Cohen is really deserving of such fine accolades.
It is about time!
Thank you for your review.
Brian Kinney
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