I’m not quite sure how to classify Velvet Goldmine. It’s a fictional bio-pic. It’s a musical of sorts. It’s pretty to look at. It’s fairly tedious to sit through.
The story centers around 70’s glam rocker, Brian Slade (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers), who fakes his own death and disappears in 1974. In 1984, Arthur Stuart (Christian Bale), a reporter, is assigned to find out what happened to him after his “death” was exposed as a hoax.
Stuart begins interviewing those who’d been with Slade since the beginning, including his ex-wife (Toni Collette) and his first manager. We see how he transformed from a folk singer-type into a full blown rock phenomenon. The movie also follows Stuart’s initial introduction to Slade’s career and how it transformed his life as well.
Ewan McGregor, although he receives top billing, plays a character who receives very little actual screen time, but is central to the story. His performance as Curt Wild, who seems loosely based on Iggy Pop, is probably the most electrifying in a film that desperately needs all the energy it can get. He’s also a dead-ringer for Kurt Cobain.
The film’s main obstacle is making the audience care about Brian Slade in the first place. His musical ability is showcased in two-bit Bowie knock-off tunes that fail to spark any interest in Slade as a musician. His character is given no admirable attributes. We never see a side of him that’s really identifiable as genuine, so why should we care about him or what happened to him?
Another problem with the movie is its length. Stretching over two hours, it would have benefitted from the loss of a few of the musical numbers and a tightening of the dialogue. Much of what goes on doesn’t really have an impact on the story or the outcome. Getting to that final scene seems to take an awfully long time.
Unless you’re a fan of Ewan McGregor and have to see everything he’s in, no matter how poor it is, stay away from Velvet Goldmine.
2.0 out of 5.0 stars
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