Beautiful and haunting.

Rating: 10/10 (22 August 2007)

Making an auspicious feature film debut, Anton Corbjin brings the same wonderful sense of essence and truly understanding to his subject matter in "Control". What I've loved over the years with Corbjin's work as a photographer is how he manages to capture the essence and spirit of his subject matter whatever it may be. He does this to a remarkable degree in "Control".
"Control" is a biopic/portrait of Ian Curtis, lead singer of the Manchester band Joy Division. Just as the band was beginning to build a name for itself, Curtis took his own life in 1980. He was only 23 years old.
With any biopic where the central character is deceased, there lies the inherent problem of maintaining audience interest when the conclusion of the story is known. Corbjin does this beautifully via a number of things he does in "Control". The very striking cinemascope black and white photography has a very warm and tactile feel to it. It sounds like a cliché, but one feels that time and place that the film depicts.
The extraordinary cinematography is combined with a strong, sympathetic script and wonderful performances from a largely unknown cast. Sam Riely is an absolute revelation as Ian Curtis. Having only seen this actor in a small role in Michael Winterbottom's "24 Hour Party People", which covered some of the same ground that "Control" does, Riely really holds the screen as Curtis. While not physically identical, he absolutely manages to capture Curtis' feeling of displacement and depression. Definitely a young actor to watch.
The only 'name' actor in the film is Smantha Morton, who plays Ian's wife Debbie. An exceptional actress who doesn't disappoint here. The actors who play the other members of Joy Division are quite effective and bring a welcome sense of humour and gravity to what is, at times, an intense and depressing story.
Highly recommended. My pick of 2007 so far.