Ian Curtis is a quiet and rather sad lad who works for an employment agency and sings in a band called Warsaw. He meets a girl named Debbie whom he promptly marries and his band, of which the name in the meantime has been changed to Joy Division, gets more and more successful. Even though Debbie and he become parents, their relationship is going downhill rapidly and Ian starts an affair with Belgium Annik whom he met after one of the gigs and he's almost never at home. Ian also suffers from epilepsy and has no-good medication for it. He doesn't know how to handle the feelings he has for Debbie and Annik and the pressure the popularity of Joy Division and the energy performing costs him.
Genre(s): Biography, Drama, Music
Runtime: 122 minutes
Rating: 7.8/10 (16,282 votes)
Release Date: 17 May 2007
Country: UK, USA, Australia, Japan
Languages: English
Company: 3 Dogs and a Pony
Sound: Dolby Digital
MPAA: Rated R for language and brief sexuality.
Director(s): Anton Corbijn
Producer(s):
Iain Canning – executive producer
Anton Corbijn – producer
Deborah Curtis – co-producer
Todd Eckert – producer
Lizzie Francke – executive producer
Megumi Fukasawa – co-producer
Peter Heslop – co-producer
Satoru Iseki – co-producer
Akira Ishii – executive producer
Korda Marshall – executive producer
Orian Williams – producer
Tony Wilson – co-producer
Writer(s):
Deborah Curtis – autobiography "Touching from a Distance"
Matt Greenhalgh – writer
Cast:
Sam Riley – Ian Curtis
Samantha Morton – Deborah Curtis
Alexandra Maria Lara – Annik Honoré
Joe Anderson – Peter Hook
James Anthony Pearson – Bernard Sumner
Harry Treadaway – Stephen Morris
Craig Parkinson – Tony Wilson
Toby Kebbell – Rob Gretton
Andrew Sheridan – Terry Mason
Robert Shelly – Twinny
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"Control" is a biopic about Ian Curtis, the lead singer of the 1970'sBritish rock band Joy Division, who killed himself in 1980 immediatelybefore the group was to embark on its first American tour. The moviechronicles Curtis' early days in Manchester, the formation and rise ofthe band, his unhappy marriage, his serial philandering, hisuncontrollable epilepsy, and his lifelong battle with depression.
One might be tempted, looking at the bareboned detailing of his life,to ask if there is really anything new here. And indeed, Curtis' storyseems to follow a fairly standard arc for the lives of artists ingeneral and rock musicians in particular (though there doesn't seem tobe a whole lot of illicit drug use going on in this case), and as suchthe movie doesn't show us much of anything we haven't already seencountless times before in similar works. Yet, "Control" is so cool,understated and restrained in its handling of the material that itsucceeds in drawing us into the lives of these characters in spite ofthe over-familiarity of the tale. The conflicts are real and theemotions raw, particularly when dealing with Curtis' rocky relationshipwith his wife, Deborah, who loved Ian unconditionally but could neverget him to reciprocate those feelings, partly because Ian had fallen inlove with a Belgian fan he met while on tour.
In a beautifully controlled and thoughtful performance, Sam Rileypoignantly captures the sadness that seems to lie ever present at thecore of Curtis' being, while Samantha Morton conveys the almostdesperate state of a woman too much in love to realize, until it is toolate perhaps, that she isn't receiving love in return (the MattGreenhalgh screenplay is based largely on Deborah's memoirs chroniclingtheir time together). Much of the anguish Curtis went through in hislife served as source material for the lyrics to many of the group'ssongs, a number of which are used to provide a running commentarythroughout the film. The movie also makes effective use of voice-overnarration to try to figure out what is going on in that troubled headof his.
For his impressive directorial debut, photographer Anton Corbijn haswisely chosen to shoot his film in artful black-and-white, the betterto capture the starkness of the scene and the state of his character'smind. Joy Division purists may object to the fact that Corbijn has hadthe actors themselves perform the songs rather than dubbing in theoriginals, but they do a fine job overall in interpreting the pieces.
Whether Curtis, in the long run, had a harder life than many who don'twind up committing suicide is not for us to determine. What the filmdoes make clear, however, is that once he felt he was losing controlover his life (symbolized by his constant and seemingly incurableepileptic seizures) and had pretty much made a mess of things as ahusband, a father and a lover, his purpose for continuing in thestruggle seemed to have disappeared. What a sad conclusion to come to,especially when one is only twenty-three years old. With subtlety andinsight, "Control" movingly distills the essence of that sadness.
I remember how overwhelmed I felt when the scene on the first TVappearance starts with 'Transmission'. It felt so surreal. I loved thatmovie because somehow it forces you to do your part and pay attentionto what is not said or obvious. Yes Ian Curtis's life is dull anduninteresting if you approach it with a cold eye. But what can anyoneexpect with a life well…so short? Like many incredible talents he wasabout to blossom, this was just the beginning of something much morebigger and intense. It was raw energy.
I completely had empathy for this young man marrying at 19 gettingstuck in a marriage-mortgage-9 to 5 job hell when obviously he wasmeant for something different. Paying the consequences for a decisiontaken too young, and being propelled to fame so quickly unable to copewith the pressure and energy that it takes when it was obvious he'dnever make it very far. I hope the people who will watch the film willremember this and the context of the 70's. I think Corbijn did a finejob at portraying the desperate situation Ian Curtis was in, doubledwith illness and depression. Sam Riley is incredibly convincing atportraying these feelings, the guilt, the doubts, the inevitable spiralwhere Ian Curtis was doomed to fall.
The choice of shooting the film in B&W was of course intentional and asCorbijn said, I too cannot think of the film being shot in colour. Itperfectly renders the darkness and sober atmosphere of JD's world. Thefilm is full of strong contrasts which completely defines what JD'smusic feels to me: Energetic Depressive
This was easily the best biopic I have seen in a long, long time. AntonCorbijn has been one of my favourite photographers for a long time, butI had no idea that he had this kind of cinematic beauty in him as well.There are images here that are simply striking, and incrediblymemorable, (such as the long shot of Ian's back with his newly-made"HATE" jacket); things that I am not likely to forget anytime soon. Inaddition to Corbijn's camera work, the acting talent here is top notch.Riley plays a convincing Ian Curtis and gets everything about theman–including his spastic march-on-the-spot stage movements–downalmost to eerie perfection. Fans looking for a touching ode to IanCurtis may want to steer clear, as its brutally frank and honestdepiction of him may leave some feeling as though he was placed in anegative light, but fans looking for an earnest portrayal of one of the20th century's most tragic pop music figures should find plenty to holdtheir interest.
Use of Black and White is sometimes used unnecessarily, and cansometimes come across as a little pretentious. In Control I'd say itwas essential. Every shade of black to grey to white is used perfectlyto bring life to the film, but always reminding us of the bleakcharacter we are dealing with. The ending I found to be particularlymoving, the thick black smoke from the church lifting our antihero intothe skies around the fields of Macclesfield.
The film also manages to convey very accurately all the events from hisshort life from a teenager up until his death without passing judgementor making rash statements about his character. It presents the factsand allows us to make up our own minds as to why he behaved as he did.Sam Riley was terrific, especially in any scene involving JoyDivision's performances. He really nailed it. The use of music as thesoundtrack with no additional scoring seemed to add to the bleakness ofthe quiet dialogue sequences.
I was also quite fond of the portrayal of Rob Gretton by Tony Kebbell,who weirdly played alongside Paddy Considine in Dead Mans Shoes who inturn played Gretton in the Factory Records themed film "24 hour partypeople". He added a little touch of humour which, without it would'vemade the film unbearably depressing.
personally, i think your '' critique" posted on this forum is just anarrogant attempt to demonstrate your "knowledge" of cinematography.sorry, i've seemed to have derailed from the movie, but i'll get tothat in a second.
from what i've taken from your critique, the only parts you seem tothoroughly enjoy are the scenes that involve joy division or joydivision performances. well, bare in mind that this movie was nevermeant to circulate joy divisions career, buy merely Ian Curtis'personal qualms. so i'll just say this to be as straight forward as ican, if you came to see a joy division film and was completelydisappointed, you're f*ckin stupid. but if you came to see a film abouta man with a dream and the trials and tribulations he endured….and itJUST SO HAPPENED to be that this involved being the front man of JoyDivision, then this movie is for you!
i just think its funny how you criticize the acting choices chosen bySam Riley. the cocky charm, the attractiveness and my personalfavorite, the ' theatrical wistful stare'. uh, its a f*ckin a movie?
"…nothing like Ian Curtis; he wasn't attractive, he wasn't likable;he was an ugly, cold, self-involved person, and knew it."
so, you must've known Ian Curtis personally since apparently you knowthat he knew he was "an ugly, cold, self-involved person, and knew it".you must've had sleepovers, huh?
apparently, Sam Riley didn't get the memo cause he has big drawn eyes,a wiry frame, a cocky charm and most of all, a theatrically wistfulstare. Ian Curtis is rolling in his grave over this.
"Morton was a cliché of the down-trodden and doting wife, all wateryeyed and desperately attempting to put their problems out of her mind"
because we know that i sure as hell don't act that way with myestranged significant other. Morton was just being "dramatic"…thatbitch. shame on her for depicting desperate housewives in a nonvengeful, sexually charged way like Eva Longoria!
bare in mind that a lot of the script was based on the writings on Ianand Deborah Curtis themselves.
how does this film condone suicide if its a rendition a true events?seriously, tell me. you seem to disagree on the idea that it doesn'tcondone, yet, you cant show an example as to how it actually does. thescene doesn't even glorify suicide in any way from what i see.
lemme just ask you one more thing, since you apparently know so muchabout film and cinematography, what in your mind would have made this agood film? tell me, i'd love to know instead of watching this god awfulcrap of a film.
simply put, you didn't criticize the film on anything relevant. and Ithink you're just trying to show off how smart you are
"The film was really very weak and didn't entice in any way." << youreally very have some really very incorrect grammar in that sentence.really very incorrect grammar.
p.s. oh yea, here's my thoughts on the film. Well done, but don't takemy word for it, just watch it yourself. done
As an offering for the converted ,this is a fine piece of work,beautifully filmed by Director, and devotee Anton Corbijn. As a standalone offering it is fatally flawed.Ian Curtis is not a great artist orsinger.Joy Division were not a great band.They did not have a greatsong list, had one popular hit, and a minor repertoire of cultclassics. Nor were they a great live band.As the years have progressedtheir "legendary" status has grown, but time has not been kind to them.The films "raison d'etre", therefore, starts shakily.
Despite these reservations the film did have a chance.Pop stars who dieyoung always have a fascination for what "might have been",and Curtis'sstory does have the potential for an Everyman tale, but it does notsucceed.New Order, the phoenix incarnation of Joy Division were farmore successful artistically, critically and popular after Curtis'sdeath.There has been little posthumous positive re evaluation of theCurtis period. It was raw, the ingredients were there for a successfulband, and they subsequently made it big. And that is about it.So thisis no "Doors" or "Thin Lizzy" tale.Instead, it is a bit boring andunremarkable.
Sam Riley provides a convincing performance as Curtis, the black andwhite photography is atmospheric and strangely lush, the contemporarysoundtrack and Joy Division music authentic.Yet it is a soul less film.Written by his widow Deborah, we never really understand what isinspiring this tortured being. Sadly, suicidal individuals rarely baretheir soul to the world, and I suspect that Deborah simply doesn'tknow. Inevitably her treatment of Ian's Mistress, Annik, iscircumspect.Visually attractive (played by Alexandra Maria Lara)hercharacterisation is wafer thin, offering little insight into theattraction, or relationship.
Joy Division and Curtis mythology centre around the "tortured youngman" image of the lead singer. This is faithfully represented. Yetyoung men in bands invariably enjoy themselves too, any "joie de vivre"is notably absent robbing the script of light and shade.In order toemotionally feel the lows, you need to have been lifted a bit as well.Here we start low, and get lower.
Corbijn is superb at capturing a verite sense of moment andtime.Deborah Curtis offers a convincing sense of narrative.Butultimately the subject material is not strong enough to carry a 117minute running time for the casual or uninformed observer.As an homagefor the die hard fan it will no doubt be essential.For the rest, itproves to be inconsequential.