31/27
A unique profile of British pop superstar Robbie Williams. The film was born from a series of interview recordings that filmmaker Michael Gracey made with Robbie Williams over a year and a half at Williams’ recording studio in Los Angeles, USA. Although the interviews were not originally intended for the film, as Gracey “just wanted to capture [Williams] in his own voice telling his story”, “most of Williams’ narration in the film is from those recordings. Robbie Williams: Nigel Martin Smith was my absolute sweetheart for legal reasons. And a first-class asshole… Aired on The 7PM Project: Episode 5 December 2024 (2024). A documentary that follows the struggles of pop star Robbie Williams as he navigates his path to stardom. Let me start by saying that I am not a Robbie Williams fan. He has had some great songs in the past, I actually know all the words to Angels, and that is just one of about a dozen songs I know the lyrics to, 9 of which are by Taylor Swift. . But anyway, my friend wanted to see the movie because he’s a big Williams fan, so I agreed to go with him and boy am I glad I did. Why is it a monkey instead of Robbie Williams? Well Williams claims that fame is about people expecting him to be a performing monkey. And I agree. You only have to watch modern chat shows to realize that all people want their stars to do for them is act like a monkey. This is Robbie at his most truthful, telling it like it is without fear of consequences. I already like him, as I like truthful people. This extends to his movie, though. His movie isn’t about his music, as only 2 or 3 songs are played throughout. The movie isn’t even really about his fame directly: the movie is about him. How he copes (or doesn’t) with fame, how he copes with competition (or doesn’t), how he copes with rejection and frustration (or doesn’t), how he enjoys drink and drugs, and how he eventually sinks so low and alienates his closest friends that he has to seek therapy to get back to being a functioning human being. It’s an amazingly honest film, and he doesn’t shy away from his own mistakes or the mistakes of others. He doesn’t portray himself as a victim, although in some ways I think he is. He wants everyone to understand who he is, who he was, and what has shaped him to this point. The cinematography is great. The lighting and colors are beautiful, the dancing is sometimes mesmerizing: the scene on the main street, with what seems to be thousands of people, is just cinematic perfection. The CGI monkey dances like the best dancer in the world, and it’s so amazing to watch that I was truly amazed at how beautiful it was. I now have a positive opinion of this man who can bare his soul to anyone and everyone and do it with restraint and style and brutal honesty. I urge anyone who likes movies to see this movie just for the cinematic experience, if nothing else. Thanks to Erik Wilson (cinematographer), beautiful work. I gave it a solid 8.