This new Canadian production about the life and music of concert pianist Glenn Gould is quite simply a stunning and fascinating cinematic portrait of a music genius. For the uninitiated, Glenn Gould's birth in 1932 to parents already in their 40s meant their focus love and education input resulted in a fantastic and handsome child/teen piano concert prodigy who became an icon of performance before the age of 20. This film is as striking and compelling as the Chet Baker documentary LETS GET LOST and easily is the piano equivalent of that definitive jazz trumpet film. The footage drawn from home movies, newsreels, TV appearances and scrapbooks especially of the period of the late 40s - 60s catapults the viewer into those iconic black and white images of James Dean in NY and the fantastic world as seen in photos and stories depicting the Actors Studio days of Brando/Clift/Wagner/Perkins that the public find absolutely fascinating. Indeed, Gould's existence and the imagery and footage shown here is the classic piano version in a parallel universe to those. At 109 minutes it certainly leisurely examines and interviews those closest to him who have outlived his short 50 years (he died in 1982) and the emotional denouement in this chronological edit is strong. I really knew nothing about Glenn Gould and now I feel as though I have been privy to a stunning talent and a concert pianist of astonishing good looks and intense private moods. He certainly was the James Dean of the North American piano concert scene. The trips to Moscow in the 50s, the surprising detour into the music of Petulia Clark, Leonard Bernstein and his Opera contacts all make for riveting viewing. It is the avalanche of sensational footage and the emotionally connective interviews that make this film an absolute must for students of cinema humanities and music alike. His death at age 50 and the extent that he looked far older show how full his life was; I did note that he died not long after his aged parents, him being their only child. This is a great, truly rewarding epic documentary and it is fascinating viewing for 50 different reasons. A 2006 Swiss film called VITUS reminds me of a fictional version of his childhood and is a good chaser.
