This documentary is an education for a raft of millennials and young people. Even for me, and I have the music taste of someone born in 1952. This ignorance is nothing to be ashamed of though, because Sparks have somehow eluded the fame of their contemporaries. “They are a band you can look up on Wikipedia and know nothing,” says Julia Marcus, a fan since the age of 12. But Sparks have a special place for many, especially those in the industry. “If you’re on a tour bus with a bunch of musicians, eventually the conversation will go to Sparks,” states Beck, the eclectic musician who defies definition much like Sparks.
Sparks defy definition because of their oeuvre’s sheer length and dynamism. After touring in the US and England in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Sparks achieved their commercial breakthrough with Kimono My House, which had a strong glam...
Sparks defy definition because of their oeuvre’s sheer length and dynamism. After touring in the US and England in the late 1960s and early 1970s, Sparks achieved their commercial breakthrough with Kimono My House, which had a strong glam...
- 8/4/2021
- by Jack Hawkins
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Shaun of the Dead director Edgar Wright is a perfect fit for the absurdist antics of art pop’s most elusive duo in this stranger-than-fiction documentary
“They are a band who you can look up on Wikipedia and know nothing!” So says long-term Sparks fan Julia Marcus, just one voice amid a dizzying array of interviewees wrestling with the stranger-than-fiction tale of one of pop’s most influentially indefinable enigmas. Charting a course from experimental American art-rock projects to breakthrough UK chart hits, outlandish film dreams and insanely challenging concert tours (a different album every night!), Edgar Wright’s energetic ode to Ron and Russell Mael marries exhaustively researched archaeology with the sugar-rush thrill of a heady teenage fan letter.
Best of all, it manages both to unpack and preserve the carefully cultivated air of mystery that surrounds the duo, leaving the viewer with a renewed admiration for their century-straddling decades of reinvention,...
“They are a band who you can look up on Wikipedia and know nothing!” So says long-term Sparks fan Julia Marcus, just one voice amid a dizzying array of interviewees wrestling with the stranger-than-fiction tale of one of pop’s most influentially indefinable enigmas. Charting a course from experimental American art-rock projects to breakthrough UK chart hits, outlandish film dreams and insanely challenging concert tours (a different album every night!), Edgar Wright’s energetic ode to Ron and Russell Mael marries exhaustively researched archaeology with the sugar-rush thrill of a heady teenage fan letter.
Best of all, it manages both to unpack and preserve the carefully cultivated air of mystery that surrounds the duo, leaving the viewer with a renewed admiration for their century-straddling decades of reinvention,...
- 8/1/2021
- by Mark Kermode Observer film critic
- The Guardian - Film News
Edgar Wright has created a real voice and distinctive cinematic style through his work, so it’s fascinating to see him move into the documentary form, in The Sparks Brothers – where he takes a look at the remarkable careers of the underrated cult band Sparks, made up of brothers Ron and Russell Mael.
We had the pleasure of speaking to Edgar to discuss this project, and why he wanted to tell their story – and whether they took any convincing. He also comments on the notion of demystifying the band, and whether there were any apprehensions in pulling back the curtain on a duo whose enigmatic presence is part of their allure. We also speak about a certain talking head interview from this doc, super-fan Julia Marcus – who just happens to be my auntie…And at the end there’s also some chat about collaborating with Anya Taylor-Joy on the filmmaker...
We had the pleasure of speaking to Edgar to discuss this project, and why he wanted to tell their story – and whether they took any convincing. He also comments on the notion of demystifying the band, and whether there were any apprehensions in pulling back the curtain on a duo whose enigmatic presence is part of their allure. We also speak about a certain talking head interview from this doc, super-fan Julia Marcus – who just happens to be my auntie…And at the end there’s also some chat about collaborating with Anya Taylor-Joy on the filmmaker...
- 7/30/2021
- by Stefan Pape
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
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