Control is a curious film. Based on the life of Joy Division lead singer Ian Curtis, it manages to take a very personal story (tracing Curtis’ rise to fame, fall into depression and eventual suicide) and present it in a completely impersonal manner. It is undeniably a well made, highly polished piece of work but I can’t help feel that it would be more at home as a 30 minute piece of video art. It seems to owe less to cinema than it does to the photo-strip stories of yesteryear’s teen mags, which should come as no surprise considering director Anton Corbijn’s background in photography.
…and so this film left me torn between two viewpoints; in some respects Control earns high marks for aesthetic and just being different (Corbjin has clearly done his own thing and created something original) but the price that the film pays is in it’s lack of emotional connection. A similar trade-off takes place with the focus – part of the reason that it resembles a photo-strip is that there appears to be nothing outside of the frame. This is a story that has been separated from the society around it despite the fact that Manchester (or even just Factory Records) was exploding at the time.
Ultimately, this is an interesting film from a visual perspective but not something I would recommend for the casual viewer and if you are a fan of the music, I would suggest grabbing a copy of the stupendously good 24 Hour Party People which covers the same ground, and much more, with a greater emotional kick and better appreciation of the music.
6/10
