Genius Within: The Inner Life of Glenn Gould

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david f This is a great documentary about the piano prodigy Glenn Gould. It covers his brief performing career, his much longer recording career, and his family and personal life. Much eccentricity on display here. Very full portrait with many interviews of his friends and people he worked with. And the music! Beautiful! Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member It's a brave breed of documentary that tries to do more than tell us the story, it tries to tell us about the person behind it. The difficult part is that this one does it with Glenn Gould- one of the most complex public figures you are likely to find. This film gives its best with some great footage and interviews with those around him but we hear little from him, it feels too speculative, like everyone involved doesn't understand him anymore than we do. That may be true, Gould just may have been that hard to define but hearing more from the man himself (from what he said while he was alive of course) may have helped us answer some questions. Despite the general uncertainty within the end result, it isn't an analysis of how great he was or some kind of hero-worship. Instead, like with his life, the documentary takes a turn and goes deeper into the dark sides of Gould be it the hypochondria or his guilt surrounding his mother. This is a well-done documentary and a must-see for any Gould fan. I also recommended it for music fans in general regardless of their preferences as Gould was just such a strange character and majestic musician. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review Audience Member This movie was a good insight into the real life of Glenn Gould which featured people that really would have insight on his personal life. It helped dispel some of the myths of his idiosyncrasies and focuses really more on Glenn as a person rather than a pianist. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Documentaries about a person can be a difficult thing to craft. The life of Glenn Gould is very easily stereotyped as the "world-hating genius hermit with mental problems". No doubt, Mr. Gould's life can be very troubled but what is amazing about this film is that it shows Mr. Gould as very human. Contrast to a documentary like Senna, Genius Within celebrates Gould's larger than life achievements and insights, but also understands that he is still a person. It may be difficult to sit through this documentary if you have no interest in Mr. Gould or classical music, but by the end of the movie you just feel that you appreciate art so much more. That in itself is difficult for a documentary to create. If you don't share Mr. Gould's love for music, you can certain appreciate it and acknowledge that Glenn Gould is one of the greatest human beings in modern history. Rated 4.5/5 Stars •  Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/09/23 Full Review Audience Member I loved it. I love Glenn Gould, so I was easily amused. It sheds some new light on a musician who has been discussed a lot. The crucial question about Gould is often lost by many people. How is it that a classical pianist (not a composer or conductor) is still getting so much attention 30 years after his passing? It isn't just his exceptional playing, nor is it his odd behavior. I think it is because he was so tuned in to our times, predicting developments in music, computers, media, etc., in some cases long before the means existed to make it real. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/13/23 Full Review Audience Member Someday I will visit Toronto and think about him and his music. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/21/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Genius Within: The Inner Life of Glenn Gould

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