Reminds me of 'This Sporting Life'

Rating: 5/10 (17 March 2008)

The story of Joy Division singer Ian Curtis is closer in style to 'This Sporting Life' than '24 Hour Party People'(one of my all-time favourite films). Anton Corbijn's film recalls that English socialist realist style of the early 1960s, with it's black and white cinematography and drab North of England setting. In Lindsay Anderson's film, Frank Machin escaped the dead end of a miner's life via Rugby League. Here, Curtis escapes the tedium of being an adviser at a Labour Exchnage in the 1970s via rock music. There's nothing in the film to suggest that Curtis - who committed suicide in 1980 - was a particular interesting character let alone an interesting subject for a feature film. In his film debut, Sam Riley has the impossible task of recreating Curtis. Often he seems vacant rather than enigmatic. Yet he's a handsome presence and does all his own singing, which adds to the feeling of authenticity. The film holds our attention when his wife Debbie is at the centre of the film. She's played by Samantha Morton, who goes from sweet teenage schoolgirl to sad-eyed wife with remarkable conviction. As an actress, Morton just gets better and better with each role.