Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man

This was a frustrating experience to sit through. Part concert film, part biography with historical footage & photos, part present day interview, these various strands seem to be struggling with each other. This was filmed primarily at a series of Leonard Cohen tribute performances organized by producer Hal Willner in Sydney, Australia during January 2005 under the banner of "Came So Far For Beauty". Many of the same artists had also performed similar concerts during 2004 in New York City and the UK. Interview clips with Leonard Cohen at his home in LA along with some archival photos and film footage are interspersed into the concert scenes.

The flow of this wasn't always very satisfying and there was one aspect that began to get more irritating the longer the film went on. The filmmakers begin sabotaging their own concert artists by editing/interjecting an occasional red sparkle/red sequin image over their performances, which you gradually realize is a foreshadowing of Leonard Cohen's own performance with U2 (filmed at a totally separate non-concert staged studio setting) to come at the very end of the film. It is like they're constantly saying: "Don't worry if you don't like this particular performance, Leonard Cohen himself is yet to come!". What kind of message is that to send in the middle of your film with other performers? Some songs are even interrupted in mid-performance by historical or interview footage and then when Leonard Cohen is telling some good anecdote we go back to another cheat sheet performance (many of the singers don't seem to know the lyrics, so their eyes and eyelids constantly have a downcast/lidded look as they look to their music stands for the words). Still, there are some terrific performances here by Rufus Wainwright (on "Everybody Knows", "Chelsea Hotel #2" & "Hallelujah") Martha Wainwright (on "The Traitor") Beth Orton & Jarvis Cocker (duet on "Death of a Ladies' Man) and former Leonard Cohen band alumni Perla Battala & Julie Christensen (they also lend terrific support for most of the other singers) on "Anthem" and with the greatest revelation being the single monikered Antony (actually Antony Hegarty of Antony and the Johnsons) giving a show-stealing rendition of "If It Be Your Will".

Leonard Cohen's & U2's seemingly mimed/lip-synced performance of "Tower of Song" comes as a big let down at the end. Even more frustratingly, the main concert's rehearsal clips show the rest of the singers rehearsing a group finale, which, after a search on the internet (see http://www.leonardcohenfiles.com/hw-sydney.html), I found out was the Sydney show's closing number "Memories" ("I walked up to the tallest and the blondest girl, I said, look, you don't know me now, but pretty soon you will, So won't you let me see, won't you let me see, won't you let me see…, your naked body.") which would have made for a much more humorous and rollicking finale but is sadly not to be seen in the film. A great opportunity lost but perhaps still a future possibility for a DVD down the road. Still, Leonard Cohen tells some great stories and Rufus Wainwright gets to tell his own personal "Leonard Cohen moment" story and Nick Cave gets to talk about his discovery of "Songs of Love and Hate", but I would rather have had a pure concert film or a pure interview/biography (or better yet, both separately!) rather than this hybrid which doesn't satisfy either craving completely. The good moments rescue this enough to bring it up to a 7 out of 10.

"Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man" is an entertaining and informative tribute to the iconic singer-songwriter/poet.

Structuring the film as a mostly chronological autobiographical interview with Cohen, director Lian Lunson intersperses his personal family photographs and home movies with cover performances at a Sydney Opera House concert to illustrate themes in his life. While his experiences in New York City have been well-documented to fans, especially in his own songs, the depth of the influence of his Canadian heritage is a new insight. With only a humorous nod to his reputation as a "ladies man" (he sounds like every rock 'n' roller on VH-1 cheerfully admitting that he became a musician to pick up chicks), his spiritual explorations are well explained, including his Jewish background and a visit with his Zen mentor.

Unusual for this adulatory genre, Cohen is articulate about his songwriting as a painstaking craft in general, though only a couple of specific songs that we see intensely performed or the albums they are from are given more context, such as who "Suzanne" was and working with Phil Spector.

Throughout, the performers from Canada, the U.S., England, Ireland and Australia, male, female, straight and gay, discuss his songs and the impact they have had on their lives and art. While it is not mentioned until the very last credit, this 2005 concert is based on a packed 2003 concert in Brooklyn also produced by Hal Willner, as part of the Canadian Consulate's annual Canada Day sponsorship in Prospect Park, under the rubric "Came So Far For Beauty: An Evening of Songs by Leonard Cohen Under the Stars," which featured many of the same performers captured on stage here, including Rufus Wainwright, who relates surprising personal anecdotes about his formative connection with the Cohen family, his sister Martha Wainwright, his mother and aunt Kate and Anna McGarrigle, Nick Cave, the Handsome Family (Brett and Rennie Sparks), Teddy Thompson and his mother Linda Thompson, and Perla Batalla and Julie Christensen who have backed Cohen on his last two tours, with an all-star downtown NYC band led by the horns of Steve Bernstein and the master guitar of Mark Ribot.

Instead of Laurie Andersen at that magical night, added are Jarvis Cocker and Antony Hegarty (known respectively as the leader of the bands Pulp and Antony and the Johnsons, though that's never mentioned in the film) and Beth Orton. The performers are only identified in the opening and closing credits. While the concert footage nicely mixes close-ups and full band shots, it is more than half-way through the film before we hear any audience reaction, and we only see glimpses of the audience towards the end. Added climactically just to the film is Cohen singing with U2 at a small club.

The interviews are all talking heads, with the extensive Cohen conversations focusing on the planes of his face, particularly as the camera gazes at him adoringly during silences, including a lot of freeze frames. There is an annoying repetitive device of blurring with fades in and fades out, and theatrical focus on a back stage scrim of beads, accompanied by odd theremin-like sounds. This reinforces the somewhat cabaret interpretations of several of the performers that would seem more appropriate to a Tom Waits tribute and are very unlike the two tribute albums that have already been produced.

Cohen himself is so charismatic and his rumbling voice is so magisterial that he surmounts the visual gimmicks.

It was a great hybrid, fascinating snippets and tidbits. Allow the filmmaker her vision. I loved the performances, which are all endearingly flawed. Cohen's humility transcends luminosity. Antony's performance tapped like vigilantes in my ribcage. It is true that the interruptions were off-putting, but they can't be labeled as digressions inasmuch as Leonard Cohen was the true star. In fact, several people I spoke with commented that they would have preferred it simply be Cohen sung by Cohen, but I rebut: What about Cohen's legacy? His legacy ( his legends, his mythology) is just as important as the man himself. To see a variety of accomplished performers dare offer their renditions of Cohen is not only compelling, it intoxicates the senses and the imagination.

A must see for any Montrealer or admirer of LC or simply poetry.

Greetings again from the darkness. Guess I went into this one with misdirected expectations. I really thought it would be more of a traditional documentary film exploring the true genius and talent of the man. In fact, really all we get are film clips from a 2005 tribute concert in Australia wrapped around some priceless interview moments with Mr. Cohen. It doesn't take much talent to quickly realize the value is with the man, not the cover songs. The question is, why doesn't our rookie filmmaker recognize this? Although into his 70's now, Mr. Cohen remains other-worldly lucid and insightful and his smooth baritone readily spews forth words of wisdom and genius. His observational and oratory skills remain unmatched. The mix of his personal home movies is a nice touch, but oh how I wish we had more of his reminiscing and just talking about his life.

Most of his music is presented by second tier artists. The real stand out is Rufus Wainwright (son and grandson to Loudon I and II). Rufus obviously worships the man and his music and his affection shines through in all three performances, especially "Chelsea Hotel #2" (a kind of tribute to Janis Joplin). Nick Cave probably most accurately captures the Cohen style, but at least half of the songs in the film were performed by women. Quite a contrast to Cohen's own style.

A really magical moment occurs at the end of the film as Leonard performs with the backing of U2. Hard to tell who is more honored at playing with whom. The reverence shown for Cohen's writing is evident throughout the film, but the interview moments are mere teases to what could have been. Make sure to stay for the credits to hear Leonard sing his own song.

Leonard Cohen fans will love this movie and for those not familiar with his work, they will be enlightened. The eclectic group of performers who pay tribute to him for starters is one of the best line ups of talent on the one stage. Seeing Nick Cave, Antony, Rufus Wainwright, Beth Orton to name a few all paying homage to Leonard Cohen's work is a real treat.

Anyone familiar with Hal Willner's tribute concerts knows that it is a unique experience to witness one. Combining this concert caught on film and the beauty and wisdom of Leonard Cohen is a delight. It is not often that you get to see a writer and performer's body of work presented in such beautiful fashion. It also says a lot about Leonard Cohen that this group of extraordinary performers are so honored to pay homage to him. That alone says so much about the man.

I saw this film at the Sundance Film Festival and it was one of the best things I saw there.