CONTROL

i had waited sooooo long for this film to come out. Ive been a joy division fan for years, my family are all from Macclesfield (where the film was set) so i knew that well, i had met Sam Riley (who plays Ian Curtis) a couple of times around Leeds when i used to watch his old band (10,000 things) play at the atrium. i liked Anton Corbijn as a music bio-pic director having seen a few other of his works, and loved Samantha Morton in Lynne Ramsay films like Morvern Callar. so.. yeah.. prrrretty excited on the way to watch control.

i saw it at the corner house in Manchester.

i wasn't disappointed. i loved that it was black and white. it takes a bold director to have the confidence in his angles and mise-en-scene to pull of a black and white film now a days. it totally suited the mood of the plot and played a part of representing Ian Curtis' life as a whole. its a grim film really, posing the question "why do we enjoy watching sad films?"

i often wonder this.

i like the grit of it all. the writer, Matt Greenhalgh includes the right balance of explaining Ian's personal life, and his role within joy division. Sam Riley plays Ian amazingly well. he manages to capture how i imagined Ian Curtis to be, without seeming like an impersonator.

the film shows a struggle between a creative mind and epilepsy, depression, drugs, an affair, having a family and the pressure of fame. the film ultimately tells the story of a dark mind, Curtis' appeal for help through his lyrics, only to be adored for the song and the words meaning ignored. everything about this film is obviously thoroughly considered, and i think it shows.

it portrays a life which Curtis' fans at the time thought that they knew everything about, through the press and the publicity surrounding joy division. when really there was an underlying sadness to all of it. the band, the songs, the lyrics, even the album covers tell a totally different story, which through watching control, viewers get an insight into.


i loved it. however depressing people say it is, its beautiful.