Don Cheadle's directorial debut is clearly a work of passion. Besides directing and starring in the film, Cheadle served as a producer and wrote the film with collaborators. If you know this - if you watch the opening credits, that is - you can kind of feel it throughout the film, which gives Cheadle a role he can shine in, a narrative he can absolutely rule over, and through time-jumps a chance to show his versatility. He obviously is very fond of the music of Miles Davis, and so should you be as the audience. For this is not a bio-pic that is meant to inform people about Miles - much of it is pure fiction - as much as it is a "social movie", something that Miles has inspired Cheadle to make.
I've listened to and read about Miles Davis enough to enjoy this. The screenplay frames the narrative choices in the beginning, when Davis tells reporter Dave Braden (Ewan McGregor) that if you're going to tell a story, do it with some style. The film is set mostly in the 1970's. Miles Davis is world-famous, but hasn't released an album in four years. He has recently played a session, which Columbia Records would like to release as a comeback, though they don't know what is on the tape. The tape gets stolen - Miles literally loses his groove - and upon getting it back, we see flashbacks from the 1950's and 60's, which relate to us the romance between Miles and Frances Taylor (Emayatzy Corinealdi).
The film is entertaining and interesting mostly because of Cheadle's lively, mischievous performance as Miles. Unfortunately the narrative is not worthy of the jazz legend. It's something to keep you entertained for one viewing, not something in which you find new layers, upon repeated listenings. The time jumps did not work for me, but instead made both story-lines feel less important. As a source for biographical or musical information about Davis, this film is unreliable, and also superficial.
It's decent. For a directorial debut it's pretty good. But the definitive film about the life and music of Miles Davis remains to be made.
I've listened to and read about Miles Davis enough to enjoy this. The screenplay frames the narrative choices in the beginning, when Davis tells reporter Dave Braden (Ewan McGregor) that if you're going to tell a story, do it with some style. The film is set mostly in the 1970's. Miles Davis is world-famous, but hasn't released an album in four years. He has recently played a session, which Columbia Records would like to release as a comeback, though they don't know what is on the tape. The tape gets stolen - Miles literally loses his groove - and upon getting it back, we see flashbacks from the 1950's and 60's, which relate to us the romance between Miles and Frances Taylor (Emayatzy Corinealdi).
The film is entertaining and interesting mostly because of Cheadle's lively, mischievous performance as Miles. Unfortunately the narrative is not worthy of the jazz legend. It's something to keep you entertained for one viewing, not something in which you find new layers, upon repeated listenings. The time jumps did not work for me, but instead made both story-lines feel less important. As a source for biographical or musical information about Davis, this film is unreliable, and also superficial.
It's decent. For a directorial debut it's pretty good. But the definitive film about the life and music of Miles Davis remains to be made.