Excellent film. About time I finally got hold of those Joy Division albums

Rating: 8/10 (15 October 2007)

In 1980 a music legend died.
The legend was a man considered by many to be a poet, a visionary and a genius. A man whose band challenged and extended the boundaries of what could be done with popular music. This was a man who, at the time, influenced an entire generation of musicians and whose shadow still hangs large over much of the music produced today.
This man's sudden death shocked me deeply. I still think of all of the great music that would never be heard and the full career that would never be.
Sorry? What was that again?
No. I'm talking about John Lennon. Frankly the death of Ian Curtis meant diddly squat to me at the time. True, I had heard of Joy Division, and I rather liked "Love With Tear Us Apart", but beyond a general sadness upon hearing of the death of a man at such a young age, Ian Curtis' death didn't touch me at all. I do remember Tony Wilson on the radio, during this time, denying that Joy Division were going to split up because "the other three guys are really talented musicians and have already started to write new songs". I remember thinking that that was a little cold and unnecessary, almost as if it didn't matter that Ian Curtis had died. Business as usual.
I cannot claim to be the biggest Joy Division aficionado in the world, simply because I still really only know a handful of their songs. My favourites are "Transmission", "Atmosphere" and "Love Will Tear Us Apart". (The popular ones?) I went to see "Control" because the snippets of the Joy Division story in the movie "24 Hour Party People" intrigued me and I wanted to know more.
In execution "Control" couldn't have been more different from "24 Hour Party People". If this had been the 1960's "24 Hour Party People" would have been late 60's, freewheeling, loud, energetic and psychedelic, with "Control" being early 60's, Alan Sillitoe, kitchen sink, grim, eee-lad-it's-grim-oop-North drama shot in expressionistic and beautiful black and white and probably starring Tom Courteney or Albert Finney.
Did I say grim? Not all of it. "Control" is shot through with a very black Northern humour. Toby Kebbell as legendary Joy Division/New Order manager Rob Gretton is absolutely hilarious, be it berating the abilities of an early Joy Division manager or trying to convince another singer to replace Ian Curtis onstage mid gig. Joe Anderson is also very funny as Peter Hook, especially when trying to wind up Tony Wilson (Craig Parkinson - less comical than Steve Coogan, but effective) or expressing his annoyance about name of the punk band the Buzzcocks.
Sam Riley has received unqualified plaudits for his performance as the tragic Ian Curtis, and so he should. He was absolutely brilliant. An astonishing physical resemblance to Curtis (much more than Sean Harris in "24 Hour Party People"). He moved like Curtis and sounded liked Curtis. (I don't know if it is true I'm told that the guys playing Joy Division in the film actually played their instruments live. If it is true, good for them. They sounded like a real band.) It might be the performance of his Sam Riley's life. I hope he turns out to be a great actor and impresses in other great films.
Outside of the above, "Control" generally had a great all round cast. Especially Samantha Morton who was great as a kind of innocent Deborah Curtis. Trying to build a life of domesticity for herself, her husband and baby, but losing out to the pressures and temptations of a music business lifestyle and Curtis' inner demons. Fantastic, straightforward and as real a performance as you could hope to see in a modern film.
One of the final shots of the film was interesting. The three remaining, grief stricken members of Joy Division sitting (in the pub?) Stephen Morris' girlfriend joins them at the table. She puts her arm around him. The camera lingers on them. The first shot of the fledgling New Order.
Excellent film. About time I finally got hold of those Joy Division albums, isn't it?
Go and see.