Control - Love Will Tear Us Apart

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Gigs V If a film - something I consider PRIMARILY - to be a medium of entertainment, is hard to watch (throughout), can it really be considered...good? To give an analogy, I don't listen to music that's hard to understand or grating on the ears for... the fun of it. This IS a very well-made and well-acted film, but BE WARNED it is incredibly bleak. I also didn’t care for the fact that Ian was so unlikeable in this. After an hour (when the film got real dark), I became disinterested. Bar 'Love Will Tear Us Apart', Joy Division's music isn't my bag either and despite BEING affected by the end of the movie (and it actually lingering the day after), I can't say this is something I enjoyed. BUT, I respect the ambition (it must be really hard to tackle suicide and depression in a film). Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/19/24 Full Review Richard L Although Control is beautifully shot and wonderfully acted, it fails to achieve its goal of properly portraying the main character's inner turmoil, and ends up feeling more like an impartial observer than a meaningful look into Ian's actual mind, making for a rather superficial (though undoubtedly pretty) biographical film. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/18/23 Full Review Tim S "Control" is the adaptation of the book "Touching From A Distance" by Deborah Curtis, the widow of Joy Division's lead singer Ian Curtis who sadly killed himself in 1980 aged 23. Already depressed by his epilepsy and struggling to balance his day job in the unemployment office with that of married life and his band commitments, Ian Curtis then added an affair into the already volatile situation. What becomes clear is Ian believed he did love both women equally and feared both a loss of either of them as well as a loss of control. The troubled life of Ian Curtis was exasperated by the rise to fame of his band at a time when his epilepsy and subsequent fit attacks were intensifying coupled with his failing marriage. Sam Riley is excellent as Ian Curtis, recreating perfectly his on-stage mannerisms including his running on the spot style of dance. Samantha Morton gives a really sympathetic performance as Debbie Curtis, the girl Ian married when they were both in their teens. Joy Division quickly rose in popularity after signing to Factory Records and in 1979 released the groundbreaking album "Unknown Pleasures." Ian's depression becomes completely unbearable when he realises he is about to loose Debbie which in turn would possibly lead to his baby daughters hatred.  "Control" is the biopic of a very talented but tormented artist. Director Anton Corbijn uses grainy black and white to reflect the gloomy areas of Manchester in the 1970's and capture the feeling of the time. This stylised feel makes it easier to give a sense of Ian Curtis's decent into depression and ultimately his decision to end his life. "Control" is both sad and enlightening in equal measure. A must for any Joy Division fan. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Shioka O Photographer Anton Corbijn's film debut, shot in black and white, highly stylish. One of rare examples of watchable biopic, I'm not the band's fan, but could see it. Score is undoubtedly good. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review chris v Absolutely magnificent, if you are a Joy Division fan, this is a must see. Based on the book, "Touching from a Distance: Ian Curtis & Joy Division" by Deborah Curtis Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review isla s I'd like to think this is a fairly insightful film about the life of Ian Curtis, singer in The Joy Division. I can't claim to have known much about him prior to seeing the film - I'm keen on music biopics, so when I heard about this film I decided to watch it. Its all in black and white, giving it a slightly underground or grunge-y type feel to it (which goes with the style of music played), I suppose, plus highlighting the bleakness of the north, where its mostly set. I certainly felt sorry for Debbie. I'd say the mundanity of their married life is well portrayed. The music recording sessions featured sounded pretty decent too. The irony of him singing about isolation didn't pass me by either. Its undoubtedly sad to see what apparently happened, although Ian Curtis was far from a perfect guy but it is a sad story never the less. As a film I thought it was quite engrossing and I'd recommend it on that basis. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Control - Love Will Tear Us Apart

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