36/32
A singular profile of British pop superstar Robbie Williams. The film emerged from multiple interview recordings that filmmaker Michael Gracey made with Robbie Williams over the course of a year and a half at Williams’ recording studio in Los Angeles, USA. Although the interviews were not originally for a film, as Gracey “just wanted to capture [Williams] in his own voice telling his story,” most of Williams’ voiceover in the film comes from those recordings. Robbie Williams: Nigel Martin Smith Was, For Legal Reasons, An Absolute Sweetheart. And a First-Class Jerk. Featured on The 7PM Project: Episode for December 5, 2024 (2024). The documentary that follows the struggles of pop star Robbie Williams as he navigates his way to fame. I’ll start by saying that I’m not a fan of Robbie Williams. He’s put out some great songs in the past. I actually know all the lyrics to Angels, and that’s just one of twelve songs that I know all the lyrics to, nine of them being Taylor Swift songs. But, anyway, my friend wanted to see the movie because she’s a huge Williams fan, so I agreed to tag along, and boy am I glad I did. Why is there an ape instead of Robbie Williams? Well, Williams claims that fame is beset by people who expect him to be a monkey to act. And I agree with that. You only have to watch modern talk shows to realize that all people want their stars to do is act like a monkey to them. This is Robbie at his most sincere, telling it like it is without fear of repercussions. I like him already, as I like sincere people. However, this extends to his movie as well. His movie isn’t about his music, there are only 2 or 3 tracks played throughout the movie. The movie isn’t even really about his fame directly – the movie is about him. How he deals (or doesn’t) with fame, how he deals with competition (or doesn’t), how he deals with rejection and frustration (or doesn’t), how he revels in drink and drugs and how he eventually falls so low and alienates himself from his closest friends that he has to seek therapy to become a functioning human being again. It’s a stunningly honest film and doesn’t shy away from his mistakes or the mistakes of others. He doesn’t portray himself as a victim, although in some ways I think he was. He wants everyone to understand who he is, who he was and what shaped him to this point. The cinematography is exquisite. The lighting and colours are beautiful, the dancing is at times hypnotic – the scene on the main street that seems to have thousands of people is just cinematic perfection. The computer generated ape dances like the best dancer in the world and it’s so wonderful to watch that I was shocked at how beautiful he was. I now have a positive opinion of this man who can bare his soul to anyone and everyone and do it with style and brutal honesty. I would urge anyone who likes cinema to watch this film, if only for the cinematic experience. Kudos to Erik Wilson (director of photography), beautiful work. I gave it a solid 8.