Meh, average

Rating: 5/10 (7 May 2008)

Very disappointing. In attempting to cover Curtis' personal relationships, the story of the band and his epilepsy it ends up exploring none in any real depth. The first hour and 25 minutes cover a lot of time very briefly. We never actually see a relationship form, he meets people and 5 minutes later they're a couple or they're friends. Also the performances are average. Everyone looks the part until they speak, when they open their mouths it sounds like they've just read what they're saying, while Morton and Riley do capture who they're playing to some extent no one convinced me they were actually in it.
It picks up at about 1 hr 25 when they start to deliver the dialogue and emotion convincingly when Tony Kebell is having a rant as Rob Gretton. It's the first scene where I forgot I was watching a film and for the last half hour it's better. It also helps that the last half hour covers a few days rather than the years covered in the hour and half before.
The actors music performances aren't convincing, they sound like a tribute act with a good rhythm section. Riley only sounds like Curtis on the odd line. It certainly doesn't present the characters as the same people they are in the far superior book it's based on. Kebell (amazing in dead man's shoes) does better than most but Paddy Considine was better in 24 Hour Party People. Whoever played Peter Hook wasn't great and Bernard Sumner is presented as a wet blanket. In fact any scene with a counterpart in 24 Hour Party People is done better in that film. The death of Curtis ultimately has little emotional impact thanks to what has come before it. In fact the only really effective part of the ending is when the excellent Atmosphere is played. That one song is more touching and affecting than the 2 hour film (though Morton is also good in the final scenes). They should've focused more on his relationship using the band as a back drop. I really wanted to like this film as I love Joy Division, but for a decent account of this time, read the book.