Death of an American Idol

Michael Jackson. King of Pop. American icon. One minute he’s about to make what was supposed to be one of the biggest comebacks in music, the next minute he’s gone and we’re watching his funeral at lunchtime.

Cinema loves stories of cultural icons, especially if they are controversial or die young. (And it seems that great talent attracts sickness, addiction, and untimely death…) So I guess we can start the countdown to a movie about the rise and fall of MJ (possibly starring Johnny Depp). What can we expect? Here’s a look at ten other outsize musical lives and deaths, as captured on the big screen. July 4th is the perfect time to have a look at these icons, mostly reflecting American culture, influence and the American dream…

(Quick aside: I remember the nights when the video clips of Thriller and Black or White premiered. In my country there was just one TV channel back then, and we were all glued to the screen. Those clips still stand out, along with Bad, as successful short movies - made by directors at the peak of their careers, John Landis and Martin Scorsese. Can you imagine that happening today? Black or White even introduced groundbreaking special effects, before their cinematic breakthrough in Terminator 2.)

10. The Glenn Miller Story (1953) – Jazz and a plane crash

James Stewart gives a warm performance as the legendary band leader who met an untimely end in a World War II airplane crash. Though much of Miller’s story has been sentimentalized here, the great Big Band music is really what it’s all about, including performances of “Little Brown Jug,” “Moonlight Serenade,” “Pennsylvania 6-5000,” “In the Mood,” and many more. The movie was nominated for 3 Academy Awards.

9. Bird (1988) – Jazz, drugs and alcohol

Charlie “Bird” Parker was Clint Eastwood’s hero since childhood. This is a true jazz fan’s movie about the music. The film shows how Parker, a genius who changed the face of modern music, was hampered and eventually destroyed by his appetite for women, food, and drugs. With wit and warmth, Bird tells the story directly, avoiding sentimentality. Eastwood used Parker’s original solos, and also patterned the dark, moody look of the film after old photos of musicians who used to appear in jazz magazines. Music lovers will be thrilled with the result, and movie lovers will find plenty to engage them in this moving tale of a great man battling his demons.

8. Beyond the Sea (2004) – Pop, jazz, folk, country… and illness

Kevin Spacey did it all in this swinging biopic: directed, wrote, produced, starred - and even sang! He plays legendary crooner Bobby Darin, whose 1950s hits included “Splish Splash” and “Mack the Knife.” Left with a bad heart after a childhood fever, Darin nonetheless seeks out the high-pressure world of stardom, performing every number like his life depended on it. Through it all, Darin keeps reinventing himself, going from Elvis-style rocker to Vegas crooner, and even long-haired 60s folkie. In their own ways, both Spacey and Darrin proved that anything can be done in America.

7. Walk the Line (2005) – Country music and collaboration

Primarily the story of the love between country stars Johnny Cash and June Carter during the early years of Cash’s career, the film also follows the early stages of Cash’s touring career alongside musicians such as Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, Elvis Presley… and of course June Carter.

Walk The Line is different from the other in this list, both because Cash’s death was at age 71 (not so untimely, but still the result of bad health), and because the movie is the result of intense collaboration between director James Mangold and Cash himself. Though both Cashes died in 2003, they oversaw the script’s development.

Mangold and Cash’s insistence that the film’s stars would actually sing paid off. Reese Witherspoon’s singing is lovely, and Joaquin Phoenix’s contains the raw energy and soul that defined Cash’s sound.

6. The Rose (1979) – Rock and OD’ing

This is not an official biography, but is considered to be based on the life story of Janis Joplin. Bette Midler, in a star-making performance, plays Rose, a talented rock star whose entire life is controlled by her cutthroat manager, Rudge (Alan Bates). Pulled down by raging alcoholism and drug addiction, as well as her own insecurities, Rose’s life begins to deteriorate to the point of complete self-destruction. This raw, uncompromising, witty, and ultimately heartbreaking film includes several incredible musical performances by Midler in actual concert settings.

5. The Doors (1991) – Rock & OD’ing 2

Val Kilmer stars as Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone’s electrifying profile of The Doors, which takes the group from its inception to its demise with the death of the “Lizard King” in a Paris hotel room in 1971. In the early days, Morrison is just a guy hanging out at the beach writing poetry. But soon The Doors’ fame begins to spread, with Morrison as the focus of attention. As Morrison’s drug consumption and erratic behavior increase exponentially, the rest of the band begins to grow tired of his late arrivals, the increasing number of cancellations, and the drunken recording sessions requiring infinite retakes. But no one can help Morrison as he spirals downward into an inferno of drugs, alcohol, public obscenity, and depression, bringing the music to an untimely end.

4. Tupac: Resurrection (2003) & Notorious (2009) – Rap, hip hop and murder

The fierce and tragic rivalry between these two rappers generated several movies.

Tupac: Resurrection is an inventive documentary, which celebrates the life of one of hip-hop’s most iconic figures. But rather than rely on friends and family, the director lets Shakur himself do the talking, as if he’s speaking from the grave. Raised by his mother, a high-profile Black Panther, Tupac grew from a deeply sensitive boy to become the voice of a generation of disenfranchised youths. Run-ins with the law, stints in jail, and feuds with east coast rappers all precede the night when he was shot five times in NYC, and his eventual murder in Las Vegas at the age of 25.

Notorious is the story of Tupac’s east coast rival, who was murdered in retaliation, shortly after Tupac’s murder, also at the young age of 25. Christopher Wallace started out as a hustler and dealer, and found himself in run-ins with the law just like its rival. But his talent and determination drove him to stardom as Notorious B.I.G., one of the greatest rappers at the time.

Love them or hate them, these movies capture the contradictory glory, and are a must-see for anyone interested in pop culture and American history and culture.

3. The Killing of John Lennon (2006) – Rock, pop and assassination

Numerous movies have been made about this legend. This recent contribution delves deep into the mind of Mark David Chapman, the crazed gunman who shot Lennon. Basing his script on Chapman’s own words from interviews, writings, court transcripts, and depositions, director Andrew Piddington retraces the events leading up to the shooting, showing Chapman’s obsession with The Catcher In The Rye and vision of himself as the hero who must root out the phonies of the world.

Jonas Ball gives a quirky debut performance, part Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver, part Rupert Pupkin in The King Of Comedyshot, part Valerie Solanas in I Shot Andy Warhol; while Piddington manages to hold viewers in suspense even though they know what is going to happen.

2. Sid & Nancy (1986) – Punk and OD’ing

Alex Cox’s riveting biopic tells the bleak, heroin-drenched story of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious and his disturbed American girlfriend, Nancy Spungen. Gary Oldman delivers a bravura performance as Sid, matched by Chloe Webb’s unhinged Nancy. The two lovers’ childlike tenderness toward each other contrasts sharply with their violent nihilism. While the script implies that Nancy’s death was accidental, the line between intention and accident is deliberately blurred.

The film’s dreamlike style and hypnotic score dramatize the schism between Sid and Nancy’s world and the world around them - and the inevitable horror when those worlds collide.

To relax from Tupac’s and Biggie’s all-American mayhem, following is one completely non-American music icon, yet one of the greatest ever - and a classic case of untimely death:

1. Amadeus (1984) – Classical music and sickness

Milos Forman’s riveting, Oscar-winning Amadeus is a fictionalized account of the real-life mysterious death of Mozart, perhaps the result of jealous actions taken by Salieri against Mozart. Determined to keep Mozart from lasting recognition, Salieri set himself on a course for Mozart’s destruction that led to his own as well. Mozart continued to mount beautiful, moving operas (incredibly staged in the film), but became obsessed with writing a Requiem as his friends, family, health, and resources wasted away. It is hard to imagine anyone - whether they are knowledgeable about classical music or not - not held captive by this superb feast for the eyes and ears.

Back to MJ, here’s a clip of one my favorites, back in the days he had the right groove, look and…. color :-) R.I.P

Also, a Spill blog has a nice take on biopics as an indie subgenre. To find more, search on Jinni for:

Pop * Rock * Jazz * Country * Music concert * Music * Musical * Untimely death * Musician’s life * Music band * Addiction * Alcohol abuse * Drug abuse * Rise and fall * Downfall * Rise to stardom * Classics * Health situation

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