Product: Last Days (2 Disc Special Edition)
Rating: 2.0
What bothered me about this movie. . .
isn't that it wasn't a completely accurate depiction of Kurt Cobain's last days on Earth. I certainly didn't expect it to be, for legal reasons if nothing else. What truly bothered me about Last Days is that it includes so many elements that are straight from Cobain's life that it's hard for the viewer to determine where the facts stop and the fiction begins.Van Sant had a choice of how to handle this movie, although I'm sure it was a difficult one. In the end, he chose to say that the movie was fictional, but inspired on the life Kurt Cobain. What puzzles me is why he would choose to include so many minute details from Cobain's actual life that would lead some viewers (call them ill-informed if you will, but many genuine Nirvana fans will simply be too young to know about the details that we older fans remember) to believe that this story is an accurate depiction of Kurt's death. From the striped sweaters, to the bulky jacket, to the sunglasses, to the hair, to the posture, to the painful greenhouse ending. . . each of these specific choices on Van Sant's part create a relatively reasonable belief that these things "actually happened." A decision needed to be made as to whether this was a biography or a work of fiction. To me, that decision truly wasn't made, to the detriment of the film. And casting Kim Gordon, of all people, to discuss the effect of "Blake's" life on his daughter struck me as explotative of an already tragic tale.I didn't detest this movie, but I can't say that I enjoyed it either. If you're looking for a completely accurate portrayal of Cobain's last days, I don't think this is the movie for you. If you are old enough to remember the details of the of the non-stop Cobain coverage that tragic week in April 1994, you may find something in it to appreciate. But I think this movie can best be enjoyed by someone without a blank slate, for whom the film can stand alone without real-life comparisons. For someone like me, who vividly remembers it all, this just doesn't measure up.