10 years after his death, David Bowie's last decade returns to the screen with “Bowie: The Final Act”, a documentary directed by Jonathan Stiasny and produced by Rogan Productions for Channel 4 and Dogwoof, which arrives in Italian cinemas as a special event for just three days, Monday 25, Tuesday 26 and Wednesday 27 May, in over 150 cinemas nationwide. The film had already had its Italian premiere at the “SeeYouSound” festival in Turin on 8 March, where it was presented as the closing title of the festival. To find out about the theaters, consult the pages of UCI Cinemas Italia and The Space Cinema circuit.
Below is the trailer for “Bowie: The Final Act”.
There is an endless editorial and audiovisual production on the British artist, a sign of his centrality in contemporary culture. However, Stiasny's work tries to avoid the more conventional celebratory tones, building in over ninety minutes a story that spans the last thirty years of Bowie's career. From the mainstream explosion of “Let's Dance” in the 1980s to the experimental deviations of the following decade, including the controversial hard rock experiences with Tin Machine, the documentary follows the ongoing evolution of an artist unable to stand still.
Ample space is also dedicated to his return to the stage in the 2000s, culminating with the acclaimed performance at the Glastonbury Festival in 2000, a moment which contributed to relaunching his international image. After two more tours, the narrative shifts to his progressive withdrawal from the stage due to health problems, up to the very confidential recording sessions of “Blackstar”, the last album released just two days before the artist's death on January 10, 2016.
Numerous historical collaborators and figures of contemporary music intervene to reconstruct Bowie's creative path. These include producer Tony Visconti, musicians Mike Garson and Earl Slick, as well as Moby, Gary Kemp and Goldie, who in the film defines Bowie as “a prophet of culture”. Alongside the musical testimonies are also those of the astronaut Chris Hadfield and the writer Hanif Kureishi.
The documentary also includes interventions by the artist's children: Duncan Jones, born Zowie Bowie, and Alexandria Zahra Jones.
“Bringing 'Bowie: The Final Act' to the Italian public is a great privilege for us,” declared Manuele Ilari, president of Madison Pictures. “With this event release we want to offer not only the celebration of an immense musical heritage, but also a sincere portrait of the man behind the icon, capable of transforming his fragility into art right up to the end”.
Daniel D`Amico for SANREMO.FM
