2022 (USA, Germany) 135 minutes
Directed by: Brett Morgan
A kaleidoscopic weave of archival performances and candid interviews immerses us in the restless starman’s singular galaxy of music, art, and identity. David Bowie had a multitude of personas as a musician, painter, actor, and world traveler. This documentary portrait, told in his own words from decades of interviews, is as bold and visually inventive as he was. Coming six years after his death, the film celebrates the immortality of his art, drawing upon an astonishing depth of rare footage including live performances of quintessential songs. The film moves through the artist’s different phases — from the experimental identities of Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane in the 1970s, to the mass appeal of “Let’s Dance” in the 1980s, to his later explorations when Bowie’s main goal was to please himself. Despite his reputation as a trickster, Bowie’s interviews are surprisingly frank, reflecting on his suburban childhood, his years of restless seeking, and falling in love with his wife of 24 years, Iman. The film reminds us how frequently he was ahead of his time, including his normalizing attitude toward bisexuality and gender bending in the early ’70s. Bowie described himself as a generalist who’s comfortable in chaos.
Premiere – 2022 Cannes Film Festival – Nominated Golden Eye
Crystal Bay Casino Crown Room – December 3 – 8:30pm