REVIEW: 9 Songs [2004]

“Now she’s gone and love burns inside me” Sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll. That pretty much epitomizes the film 9 Songs. Michael Winterbottom is a director that has never shied away from genre hopping or controversy, doing both with this explicit romance consisting of concert footage and sexual intercourse, with a little story thrown in for good measure. More an art film than anything that should be given a theatrical release, it is only 71-minutes in length, but that is enough for what is being portrayed. One can only…

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TIFF08 REVIEW: Genova [Summer in Genoa] [2008]

“My heart bleeds” Michael Winterbottom is a director that never sticks to one genre and never compromises his vision. From the well-received music bio-pic 24 Hour Party People, to a meta-comedy in A Cock and Bull Story, to a sexually graphic concert narrative in 9 Songs, to the story of Daniel Pearl’s murder in the Middle East with A Mighty Heart, he won’t shy from controversial subject matter. That makes his new film, Genova [Summer in Genoa], that much more interesting because it is on all accounts a very safe…

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