Control (The Miriam Collection) |  | Director: Anton Corbijn
Actors: Samantha Morton, Sam Riley (II), Alexandra Maria Lara, Joe Anderson (VI), Toby Kebbell
Studio: The Weinstein Company
Category: DVD
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $15.78
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Seller: inetvideo
Rating:  74 reviews
Sales Rank: 7766
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC, Widescreen
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Region: 1
Discs: 1
Running Time: 122 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.3
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.4 x 0.7
MPN: 81025
UPC: 796019810258
EAN: 0796019810258
ASIN: B00104AYGU
Theatrical Release Date: 2007
Release Date: June 3, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Amazon.com
In his elegiac debut, Anton Corbijn combines the music film with the social drama to stunning success. Based on Deborah Curtis's clear-eyed biography, Touching from a Distance, Control recounts the wrenching tale of a working-class lad about to hit the highest highs only to be waylaid by the lowest lows. Born and raised in Macclesfield, a suburban community outside Manchester, Ian Curtis (newcomer Sam Riley in a remarkable performance) dreams of fronting a band. Just out of high school in the mid-1970s, he finds three like minds with whom he forms post-punk quartet Warsaw--better known as Joy Division (Riley and castmates ably recreate their somber sound). All the while, he falls in love, marries, and fathers a child with Deborah (Samantha Morton, turning a thankless role into a triumph). While Curtis should be enjoying parenthood and newfound fame, he's plagued by seizures. A diagnosis of epilepsy leads to powerful medications with unpredictable side effects. Then, while on tour, he falls in love with another woman. His solution to these problems is a matter of public record, but Corbijn concentrates on Curtis's life rather than his death. Just as Control establishes a link between such disparate black and white works as fellow photographer Bruce Weber's Let's Get Lost and kitchen-sink classics like The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, the Dutch-born, UK-based director presents his subject not as some iconic T-shirt image, but as a deeply flawed--if massively talented--human being. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Description
Control tells the remarkable story of Ian Curtis, lead singer of the influential band Joy Division and one of the most enigmatic figures in all of rock music. Based on his wife's memoir, Control follows Curtis' humble Manchester origins and his rapid rise to fame, tormented battle with epilepsy, and struggles with love that led to his death at the age of 23.
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 74
 When The Legend Becomes Fact... August 19, 2010
Goodbye Cruel World (Under Your Skin)
As much as I enjoy this great movie, each time I watch it I can't help but think how startled Ian Curtis would probably have been to know that it would be his legacy to be remembered as the tragic figure Control (and to a much lesser extent 24 Hour Party People) made him out to be, instead of the social rebel he thought he was. The actual Curtis swore and drank, had temper fits, could be temperamental and difficult to friend and loved-one alike, and was known for his loud, scathing diatribes, including a famous one in which he blasted David Bowie for living to age thirty, despite the tone of Bowie's 1970s ode to dying young, "All The Young Dudes". In contrast the Ian Curtis of Control was a suffering martyr figure with a quiet, Keats-like delicacy that gave him a wispy quality that really doesn't gel with what we know of the flesh and blood man.
Having said all that, Control is still one of the most watchable films that's ever been made about the rock and roll scene. It is a both a labor of love and an artistic remembrance of a place and time and those who lived there. The story it tells can be either criticized as a subjective exercise in idealism, or praised for its close connection to those participants in and around Joy Division (Tony Wilson, Deborah and Natalie Curtis, the guys from New Order) who remained alive at the time of filming. One member of the band went on record as saying that the events depicted in Control were not much like they were in reality, but added that in telling Curtis' story, Control improved things, making the story more dramatic and approachable.
No commentary on this film would be complete without mentioning both the brilliance of its soundtrack and the meticulous reenactments of its concert scenes. Many of the locations from Curtis' life and death were actually used in the making of Control, adding an unmistakable punch to the plot. Finally, the fine acting on the part of virtually everyone who appeared onscreen was a delight to see, with Samantha Morton and Sam Riley turning out emotional performances that deserved Oscar recognition: something an outside film like Control would never get in Hollywood.
Like Ian Curtis himself, Control isn't perfect but it's still darn interesting.
Beautifully realized art film about a wasted life August 6, 2010
Jon Stevens (Los Angeles)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Beautifully realized art film about a wasted life. Stunningly photographed, brilliantly written and acted, however, unfortunately about someone not worthy of having had a film made about him. So selfish, so self centered, as though he was the only one whose life mattered, devastating the wife who loved him, betraying his band, his manager whose dialogue in the film is totally outstanding. From its first frame it's a visual feast in black and white, each angle like a painting and therefore I enjoyed watching it, but since I wasn't familiar with Ian Curtis' bio, I was disappointed that I wasted my time seeing a film about a waste of a human being and my Brazilian wife was even more pissed than I. Yet, one cannot but applaud the purely genius filmmaking, a treat to anyone who loves cinema as an art form.
So this is permanence; love-shattered pride. What once was innocence, has turned on its side... July 29, 2010
Andrew Ellington (I'm kind of everywhere)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
If you are expecting another run-of-the-mill biopic about a drug-addled rock star and are thinking that you don't really need to see another one of those, I urge you to throw your inhibitions to the wind and snatch up this superb film, for it is far from run-of-the-mill. In fact, `Control' may be the best biopic of this nature I've seen in quite some time.
The film tells the story of Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis. At a very young age (and I mean VERY young) Ian found himself married, fronting a rock back, thrust into fatherhood and rising to superstardom. While all of those things are what dreams are made of, when you add to the mix harrowing epileptic seizures and medications with undesirable side effects you find your protagonist beyond depressed and unable to cope with the strains of each individual responsibility. A mistress on the road certainly doesn't help any (especially when your wife finds out). Yes, `Control' is about a tortured musician, but not in the vein of most films in this genre. This man's torment was even more poignant because of his inability to rise above it.
It's hard to believe that a lot of what makes this film so great comes from newcomers to the game. Everything about this film feels so mature, so authentic. It baffles me that this is Anton Corbijn's debut film. Nothing about this film says `amateur' at all.
The decision to shoot the film in black and white was genius, adding crisp layers of style and flair. The way he frames each actor, each scene, each musical experience feels straight out of a magazine, yet it never feels like he's intentionally `glamming' up anything. This film retains its raw appeal without losing an ounce of finesse.
The screenplay, written by Matt Greenhalgh, is a stunning piece of work. What I found so moving about it was that it highlighted Curtis's youth with subtle flourishes, exposing the faults within his own impatience that helped propel him to his doom. Notice the way he does everything pertinent to his life is with a nonchalance and rashness that almost spells failure before it progresses. The way he proposes, the way he suggests a child; it's done without any real thought given, showing his immaturity. And yet, when his world begins to spiral out of control we are given a more intimate look at very mature emotions. The way that Corbijn allows his actors (namely Sam Riley) to express what is racing through their minds, with prolonged shots of distilled faces and silent afflictions, is just magnificently real and unquestionably stirring to the soul.
I also really loved the use of music here. A lot of times with a musician's biopic, the music can fall to one of two extremes; either it feels like an afterthought, used because it has to be, or it feels too influential, giving the events in the musician's life a veneer of manufactured realities. Here, the music feels like a real part of the film. It doesn't drive the film, which is key, but it illuminates the emotions and is used as a catalyst for great character development.
And that brings me to the performances found within this brilliant biopic.
Alexandra Maria Lara is beautiful (and I mean B-E-A-UTIFUL) and she can act too, delivering a simple and subtle look at a woman falling in love with a man she can't have completely. Toby Kebbell is also strikingly good as Joy Division's manager. His smooth swagger is key to developing a character with polished arrogance. Samantha Morton (one of the best actresses working today, no exceptions) is flawless here. I love what she was able to do with a very clichéd character (suffering spouse). It's not like there is a lot of originality within the character (it is what it is) but she brings so much heartfelt emotion to her every scene. Hearing her utter those heartbreaking words, "I don't deserve this", literally made me shiver. What Sam Riley does with the scene afterwards is astonishing. Yes, the way he completely melts down before the camera without once betraying honest emotion for forced theatrics is stunning. Sam Riley is a god here. Nothing against the likes of Jamie Foxx and Joaquin Phoenix who came before him, but they can't even compare to the raw earnest realism that Riley pulled out of this character. Forget that apparent mimicry found in the Oscar loved performances, Riley captures a soul as apposed to a mannerism. He lives and breathes this performance, and it shows in his unwavering from character.
In the end I highly recommend this film. It is far more than one would expect it to be, for it focuses on a man who is not far removed from the youth of today. He wanted it all, and he thought he could handle it, but at the ripe old age of 23 it proved too heavy for his fragile shoulders.
 Just OK... April 20, 2010
William Lecklikner (Philadelphia, PA USA)
This movie, based on Deborah Curtis' book Touching from a Distance, is a little lopsided...and I guess it should be. Obviously Mrs. Curtis' life was torn apart by Ian's isolation due to his affair, mental state, medical condition, and suicide. So you get the sense that this is Ian's story being told by a jilted lover. I do not mean that to be harsh. Deborah should have been angry. But it would have been nice to see more of the creation of the band and the conversations Ian had with his band mates, friends, family, etc...
I can recommend this as a Joy Division/Ian Curtis/New Order fan but I would have preferred the whole story and not just one side of it.
Check out the Joy Division doc that is available as well. I liked that a lot more.
Well done, with a few flaws March 5, 2010
foghorn
You know the story. Ian Curtis, lead singer/songwriter for Joy Division, tragically ends his young life just as one of the most influential post-punk UK bands from the late 70's begins their climb to fame.
This movie begged to be filmed in black and white, and thankfully Anton Corbijn had the good sense to do it. The cinematography, score (if you want to call it a "score" - it is mainly songs by other artists, such as Bowie, Lou Reed, and Kraftwerk, that influenced Curtis), and casting are all top notch. Sam Riley is uncanny as Ian Curtis, and Samantha Morton as Debbie Curtis and Alexandra Maria Lara as Annik Honore probably could not have been cast better either. Tony Kebbel is a kick to watch as Rob Gretton.
As long is one is aware the movie focuses primarily on Curtis's relationship with his wife and his affair with Annik Honore, all is well. And there is enough musical footage thrown in to satisfy most Joy Division fans, which, I might add, is as about as realistic as one could ever expect from a movie. There are however, two or three parts of the film of which I must be critical. The first is technical in nature but to me is huge. There is a scene in the studio when the engineer is taping "Isolation" - Ian is laying down the vocal track to the already existing band tracks. Why in God's name, after putting so much effort into getting Riley to sound like Curtis (which in 90% of the movie was amazingly successful), do they allow him to sing Isolation in a way which sounds nothing like Curtis at all? This scene mystifies me completely. Riley sounds like a sick choir boy, so I was expecting the engineer to say "Ian, what's wrong?"...but at the end of the song he tells him, essentially, "great job, that's a wrap". Sorry, no. That vocal track isn't even close to reality. The second issue is with the ending. Corbijn seems to be suggesting Ian took his life primarily as a result of his anguish over relationship issues, his love for Annik and guilt over what he had done to his wife. This is of course a distinct possibility, and no one will ever know the truth, but to those who know the history, the music, the lyrics, the environment, the epilepsy....this implication seems a little over-simplistic (although to be fair, since the movie was based on Debbie Curtis's book "Touching From a Distance", perhaps Corbijn was trying to stay true to what she had written, and I have not read that book). Also, Corbijn made it seem Curtis's suicide was almost a "last minute", or at best, a "last hour", decision. Again....maybe. But it didn't ring true to my sense of what was likely. Your mileage may vary. Finally, I was disappointed there was no mention of the album "Closer", even though we hear tracks from it. Odd to say the least.
Certainly a film worth seeing, but for the true Joy Division aficionado, get the documentary by Grant Gee. Superb.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 74
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