Kurt Cobain About a Son

Utilizing Michael Azerrad's 1992-1993 audio interviews with now-deceased grunge rocker Kurt Cobain as a springboard, director AJ Schnack has fashioned an impressionistic and absorbing, if thinly-derived, account of a reluctant celebrity, one who enjoyed the hungry years much more so than the sudden fame. Born in Abderdeen, Washington, Cobain recounts a carefree childhood up until his parents were divorced around the age of seven (something he found unacceptable); diagnosed with scoliosis in the eighth grade, and quickly turning to marijuana to ease both his spinal and stomach pain, Cobain freely admits he began to exhibit schizophrenic behavior and compulsive disorders. He acknowledges he was offered grants after high school to attend art school (for artwork that we never see) but instead wanted to focus on his music, which got him kicked out of the house. The streets (and friends' couches) seem a bizarre existence for an exceptionally gifted teenager, but Cobain found the independence freeing and fun ("I was being a bachelor!" he says). While Cobain is talking, Schnack's camera roams the streets of Aberdeen, nearby Montesano (where Cobain also briefly lived), Olympia, and finally Seattle, where true success found the icon at last. What appears to be the typical hard-luck road to stardom is shrugged off by Cobain, who always enjoyed the struggle more than the success. The film is a gamble--at times interesting, funny, irritating, and boring--but Kurt Cobain's words speak for themselves, and even non-fans might be intrigued by his unimaginable climb up from nowhere. **1/2 from ****

It's so delightfully refreshing watching these types of "documentary" films. The film is not like many others I have seen as it is highly original and experimental. There is nothing to spoil in this piece really. It's just a really relaxing experience throughout.

It sounds a long time of just simply listening to audiotapes of Kurt Cobain - and it actually is. I disagree when I hear that only people who like Nirvana/Kurt Cobain would enjoy and appreciate the film. For people who really appreciate film language, it is a film to watch too. I have seen it twice now and it does amaze me that I don't get bored. The mild soundtrack in the background along with pictures and video clips makes it a journey while you listen. Basically all of the clips you see are merged together with what he is saying to give a sense of atmosphere and relevance. ( There is no clips of Kurt Cobain or Nirvana. Nor is there any songs. The only small clips of Kurt are at the very end) Without spoiling (even if that's not really possible), there is one particular clip where there is a man walking in the background which is supposed to be Kurt. Therefore it's also a documentary you need to pay attention to, just like any other film.

But if you actually are interested to see this piece because you are a Kurt Cobain fan, you really should have a look. It's probably the film which made me really assured that Kurt Cobain was a true role model. You can read as much about him as you want, but the interviews which this film provides is truly excellent.

It will definitely not suit everyone, but for me it is one of the best crafted documentaries I have ever seen.

Cinematic Documentary has blossomed the last 10 years as more and more artists find reality interesting enough to make them stay away from "creating a world of their own", a.k.a. fiction. It was matter of time before the musical documentary would take the lead on this new interest in this genre of film-making -just like on TV before.

In those last years countless films have been released on anything that has to do with music -any kind of music. The most interesting of them weren't those about my (or your) favorite artists, but rather the ones that had a real cinematic approach on the way each was presenting the story. Moreover, the best of them were/are those that could be something more than just a "fairy-tale of drugs and self-destruction" or a "scientific musical analysis".

"About a Son" manages to pass this "test". Interested or not in Kurt Cobain, you cant ignore its cinematography; and that alone will be enough for you to sit and watch the film. But beyond this, the structure of the movie and director's subtle comments on Cobain's words are what make this a great documentary.

This is as close and personal you'll ever get to Kurt Cobain on film. Don't miss it.

I enjoyed these recording of Kurt very much. It gives you a real understanding of how misunderstood Kurt was but also what made him so special. This film goes into Kurts views and how he felt from an out of place kid from Aberdeen to an Iconic rock star that never really wanted to be in the spotlight. A must see or maybe even just listen for any Nirvana fan....Kurt was the definition of " The man who sold the world"

A quiet, slow, but haunting meditation on the late rock hero may be an acquired taste for pre-existing fans, but ultimately ends up being a haunting character study regardless. Why this documentary really sticks out is in it's approach. Guided merely by audio clips of one of Cobain's last, and most in-depth interviews, the director shows long and lingering images of his surroundings while we listen to the troubled, quite misperceived star vent his frustrations with celebrity and recall his modest upbringings.

While slightly overlong with silent pauses in between statements, About A Boy is unique, intimate, and ultimately extremely satisfying in distilling some of the myths surrounding this icon and helping to re-humanize him again by giving us the visual counterparts to Cobain's world, without the hype.