Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man (2006)

This film introduced me to Leonard Cohen, who I vaguely knew as the writer of songs like "Tower of Song" and "Suzanne" but otherwise knew nothing about. In short, he's fascinating, and this film is as much about the art of composing as it is about the songs themselves. But there was not enough Leonard Cohen and too much time devoted to mediocre renditions of his music. Rufus Wainwright is entertaining, but the redeeming feature of the performances is the U2/Leonard collaboration which comes at the very end of the film. It's worth sitting through just for the expression on Larry Mullen Jr.'s face, the obvious worship for Leonard by The Edge and to hear Bono as a backup singer, with Adam Clayton looking bemused. I would only recommend this film to someone who knows music and can appreciate just how much work Leonard puts into his songs; otherwise, you'll be yawning an hour in.

This film should have been only 10 minutes. I mean there is really only 10 minute worth of watchable content in this thing (I even hesitate to call it a movie). The opening credits of the film was somehow promising. As the film begins by short comments of the man himself, you really rub your hands and stay tuned for more footage from Cohen's life. Well, Nick Cave does a reasonable job covering one of Cohen's famous songs. The length of Cave's performance makes you even more eager to see more of Cohen whose wit and well spoken words have already tickled your fancy. But as it turns out Cave's performance is only the start of lengthy super boring performances by literally a bunch of no ones who don't even have a minimal attraction to keep you on your seat. I mean what does the filmmaker really think? five-minute close-up shots of wanna be singers in a fake concert in Australia!!! What does the filmmaker really think to insult the audience by adding "fake applause" to these endless nasty performances. The film is a perfect torture that shows you very little of what you came to see. There is not a single footage of Cohen's past. In fact, except for a few photographs of his early days as a singer/poet there is absolutely nothing! If you add up all the minutes that Cohen talks it may not even reach 10 minutes. But these 10 minutes are tortuously presented bit by bit in between disastrous camera-work that captures some of the most unattractive people screaming Cohen's lyrics. If you ever decided to waste your money on this film, DON'T! just throw it in the garbage and at least save your time.

Greetings again from the darkness. Guess I went into this one with misdirected expectations. I really thought it would be more of a traditional documentary film exploring the true genius and talent of the man. In fact, really all we get are film clips from a 2005 tribute concert in Australia wrapped around some priceless interview moments with Mr. Cohen. It doesn't take much talent to quickly realize the value is with the man, not the cover songs. The question is, why doesn't our rookie filmmaker recognize this? Although into his 70's now, Mr. Cohen remains other-worldly lucid and insightful and his smooth baritone readily spews forth words of wisdom and genius. His observational and oratory skills remain unmatched. The mix of his personal home movies is a nice touch, but oh how I wish we had more of his reminiscing and just talking about his life.Most of his music is presented by second tier artists. The real stand out is Rufus Wainwright (son and grandson to Loudon I and II). Rufus obviously worships the man and his music and his affection shines through in all three performances, especially "Chelsea Hotel #2" (a kind of tribute to Janis Joplin). Nick Cave probably most accurately captures the Cohen style, but at least half of the songs in the film were performed by women. Quite a contrast to Cohen's own style.A really magical moment occurs at the end of the film as Leonard performs with the backing of U2. Hard to tell who is more honored at playing with whom. The reverence shown for Cohen's writing is evident throughout the film, but the interview moments are mere teases to what could have been. Make sure to stay for the credits to hear Leonard sing his own song.

A touching, satisfying reflection on the life and work of the fine Canadian poet and lyricist. With obvious care and admiration, the filmmakers have woven together performances of several of Cohen's songs, interspersed with segments from a recent interview with Cohen, who is 72, occasional comments by others, and archival footage and stills that reach back to Cohen's early childhood in Montreal. All but one of the songs – both older and newer numbers - are performed by various artists during a concert in Sydney, Australia, in early 2005. Usually I prefer concert films that are pure, i.e., with the music uninterrupted by talking heads. But in this case, Cohen's reminiscences and reflections are sufficiently intriguing and deeply soulful that the Cohen interview segments nicely complement the songs.Among a dozen performers, those whose numbers stood out most for me were Rufus Wainwright (Everybody Knows, Hallelujah), Nick Cave (I'm Your Man, Suzanne), Anna and Kate McGarrigle (Winter Lady), Beth Orton (Sisters of Mercy), and Julie Christensen and Perla Batalla (Anthem). At the end, Cohen himself sings Tower of Song, backed by U2, in a performance staged at an intimate New York nightclub. Along the way we learn about Cohen's long embrace of Zen (and see old footage of him with his teacher, Roshi), discover how long and hard he works to create the lyrics for a song, and get some notions about how his mind operates. He is not nostalgic or sentimental. He doesn't look backwards, claiming to indulge in neither regrets about past mistakes nor pride about accomplishments.Good as it is, the film could have been better. With a single exception (Rufus Wainwright's delightful account of his first meeting with Cohen), brief interview segments with Bono, The Edge and several other performers contribute little to the flow of things. Better to have added more songs, especially a couple more by Cohen himself. Still, this work does seem to capture the essence of this enigmatic, brilliant, incisive and altogether unique contributor to the world of pop music. The "stench of enlightenment," to borrow a Zen phrase, seems to have dissipated from Cohen. Indeed, he comes across as calm, candid and wryly self deprecating. If his early work seemed to emanate from a being torn by spiritual angst, it does appear that Cohen has faced his demons and moved on. My grade: 7.5/10 (low B+)