Can't Stand Losing You: Surviving the Police

Released Mar 20, 2015

1 hr. 19 min.

Documentary

Biography

History

Drama

List

39%

18 Reviews

Tomatometer

65%

100+ Ratings

Audience Score

The photographs of guitarist Andy Summers chronicle his early days in the psychedelic '60s music scene and his experiences as a member of the phenomenally successful band, the Police.

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Marc Z

An intimate look at the influences, rise, and demise of the British rock band, The Police. It is based on the memoir of band member, Andy Summers, and takes place at the point of the reunion tour for The Police in 2007. Aside from enjoying the music of this trio, I enjoyed the back story, and the intimate documentary footage. This one is, obviously, from the perspective of Summers, who may be an unreliable narrator; however, that doesn't lessen the enjoyment. If you are a Police fan you should add a half a star.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/20/23

Full Review

Kevin L

Watching 'Can't Stand Losing You: Surviving The Police'. Meh. Too much Sting, not enough of Summers, Copeland, and just another different, good songwriter. Pretty boring a lot of the time. Summers' narration seems to be much like his personality which comes across as rather truculent and not exactly excitable. The live stuff is good. Wish there was more about actually writing and recording and not just the problems recording. 2.8 stars

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

11/12/22

Full Review

michael t

Obviously this movie is of most interest to Police fans. The tensions within the band that led to them breaking up are by now well known. Sting as the primary songwriter and lead singer gave him priority in the press and public mind. That coupled with his Bi-Polar Disorder made him hard to get along with for the other band members; but they didn't just roll over and let him steamroll them. I believe that the tensions between them contributed to their creative genius as well as leading to their eventual demise. The aspect of living under a microscope coupled with their meteoric rise to fame and wealth and the attendant drug abuse that so frequently goes with it created personal tensions that made it hard for them to function as a cohesive unit. This is similar to what happened to The Beatles. Partisans of Sting may say that Andy is exhibiting "sour grapes", but he is chronicling what he experienced from his perspective. I liked seeing the early footage of the Police as well as Andy's early experiences playing in bands during the '60's. The one weak part for me was that the reunion tour was not better integrated into the narrative. Presumably he did not want to reiterate that their personal dynamics did not improve after a 27 year hiatus; Just as Cream only did one reunion. The critics were more negative about this film than the fans.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Quite interesting look at the band from Andy's perspective. I knew little about the beginnings of the band or the background of the more experienced Summers. You also rralize that they snuffed out a lot of great music by breaking up. It's quite apparent that certain combos of musicians are where the magic happens: Zep, Beatles, Stones, etc. Sure, Sting had a few good moments after the band, but the albums the Polife put out couldn't be beat.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/03/23

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Audience Member

Just for The Police fans.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/16/23

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Audience Member

Siempre supe que Andy Summers era mi favorito. Lo acabo de comprobar.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/24/23

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Andy Grieve

Director

Lauren Lazin

Director

Stewart Copeland

Actor

The Police

Themselves

Sting

Actor

Andy Summers

Actor

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Brad Wheeler

Globe and Mail

The film is a drag - lightened up unintentionally by Summers's laughable prose.

Rated: 1/4

May 1, 2015

Full Review

Linda Barnard

Toronto Star

A reminder of what this reluctant punk band that perfected a reggae-spiced pop-rock sound achieved, and the strength of the music they made.

Apr 30, 2015

Full Review

Bruce Kirkland

Toronto Sun

The scope of Andy Grieve and Lauren Lazin's film is extremely limited.

Rated: 2.5/5

Apr 30, 2015

Full Review

Richard Crouse

Richard Crouse

Summers is an amiable host but the inclusion of fresh interviews with his former band mates - who appear in archival and some newly shot footage from their one-off 2008 reunion tour - might have broadened the story and added some grit to the tale.

Rated: 3/5

Feb 3, 2021

Full Review

Jonathan Kiefer

SF Weekly

Semi stiff voiceover readings from his memoir One Train Later make Summers sound like a hostage

Aug 24, 2017

Full Review

Joe Bendel

Epoch Times

Jazz listeners always knew Summers was the coolest member of the Police, and that judgment is vindicated by Andy Grieve's Can't Stand Losing You: Surviving the Police.

Rated: 4/5

May 22, 2016

Full Review

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Synopsis

The photographs of guitarist Andy Summers chronicle his early days in the psychedelic '60s music scene and his experiences as a member of the phenomenally successful band, the Police.

Director: Andy Grieve, Lauren Lazin
Executive Producer: Andy Summers, William J. Immerman
Distributor: Cinema Libre Studio
Production Co: Yari Film Group, Public Road Prods., Saturn Films
Genre: Documentary, Biography, History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 20, 2015, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 4, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $23.2K

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