Control Reviews and Ratings


  • rayld02
    November 25, 2009
    rayld02
    Ian Curtis, he is one of my favorite people since then. His music is so dark and so was his soul. He lived the life in success but in the music of life, did he make better harmonies?

    ?Control? is an independent British film directed by Anton Corbijn in 2007. The movie is basical...( read more)ly about the life and death of Ian Curtis when he was 23. It was written by his wife Deborah Curtis.

    The movie starts in the life of young Ian Kevin Curtis in Macclesfield, United Kingdom. His teenage life was exemplified with his great madness to music and other forms of art. He was described in the film as a fanatic of poetry and music. Writers such as Wordsworth and J. G. Ballard were referenced as his major influences. Musically, he was influenced greatly by David Bowie, Iggy Pop, Sex Pistols, and The Doors.

    Ian got married at an early age. He lived with his wife Deborah and had a child with her. He was first employed in Job Centre, an employment agency in UK where he met a lot of different people every day. He got into the music business when he met his then band members and band manager. They were called collectively as Warsaw. Later they decided to change the band?s name to Joy Division as reference to the name of Nazi Concentration camp which became a prostitution site for German soldiers. He was also described as a man of pure melancholy and he put into words with melodies all he feels.

    Ian had cheated with his wife having had an affair with a fan named Annik Honore who later became the cause of a divorce. When he was diagnosed with being ?epileptic? his life worsened and so as his relationship with people around him. Medications gave him much sufferings and pain as time passed by. In the end, he decided to conclude his life with hanging himself to death when he realized that he could not take it anymore.

    This movie is an inspiration for fans and non-fans of the man. Actually, people who don?t know him that much can adapt freely with the film without having to read his biography. Maybe one can relate to his life especially when you are purely or mostly melancholic by temperament.

    Death and after death

    Is death an escape for all we are having right now? Ian Curtis I can say was a cowardly man who had an exodus from his miserable life. He ended his life when it was in climax. You?ll love him, you?ll hate him, and in the end you?ll love him. Nobody lives the life in perfect harmony but you will decide whether to end the music or keep it playing. I cannot judge him by what he did. He had gone through a lot of suffering.

    First movie I thought of while seeing this film was the 1980 Martin Scorsese?s ?Raging Bull?. Control is in black and white. Cinematography is superb. I enjoyed every scene especially the stage performances of the band. Sam Riley is Ian Curtis. Actually, I often get confused if that performing on stage is the real Ian Curtis or Sam Riley the actor. Sam did really excellent in portraying Ian Curtis. Not only he looks like him in facial features, he also moves and talks like him. The lip-synching worked really fine. He is Ian Curtis. Very convincing was his acting. I would also like to commend the actors who played Joy Division band members in the film. Like Sam Riley to Ian Curtis, they do not just look like them, they move like them on stage. The playing of instruments is well synchronized with the pre-recorded music.

    The movie made mention of several famous people in history and pop culture. It made reference to David Bowie, Iggy Pop, Jim Morrison, of The Doors, Sex Pistols, Wordsworth, J. G. Ballard, movies such as ?The Sound of Music?, and Francis Ford Coppola?s ?Apocalypse Now? as some of Curtis? major influences.

    Worked very well for me. Very dark and melancholic.
  • UsernameMissing
    November 24, 2009
    UsernameMissing
    Fucking brilliant! Amazing biopic about one of the most influential bands in the world and great portrait of Ian Curtis.
  • Rossjm
    November 14, 2009
    Rossjm
    Fantastic film about Joy Division and, mostly, Joy Division's troubled lead singer Ian Curtis.

    This is not a bio-pic about Joy Division, more so Ian Curtis and this insight into his life is both interesting and touching. It follows him from the age of 16, signs of trouble alre...( read more)ady showing, skips a few years and finally shows his life before his tragic suicide.

    Shot in black and white by music video director (he did Atmosphere in 1988) and photography Anton Cobrjin, who had worked with Joy Divison a lot in his career, was the best chocie of director due to his understaning of the band and the leading man and it shows. He gets the emotion and the hardships perfect. Yet what he does with the most skill is portray Curtis's mind frame and mental issues, such as deep depression, which were obvious throughout most of Joy Division's song catalogue, often avoided because of the depressing nature but loved by genuine fans.

    Joy Division songs, actually performed vocally by Sam Riley, are editied in every now and again to show their significance and what they actually mirrored, which gives fans and people experiancing them for the first time an interesting back story to them as well as something to apply the songs to in future.

    The scene of his sucide is heart wrenching and extremly well shot which makes us feel maximum emotion at one of the most infamous deaths in music history.

    This is not an easy bio-pic to view. It is slow and metaculously lingers on certain points but if you have patiance and genuine interest, you will savour this film and understand it for what it really is.
  • Wanicola
    November 14, 2009
    Wanicola
    Gran band, grande musica e grandissimo film. In memoria di Ian Curtis
  • anoceandrowning
    October 8, 2009
    anoceandrowning
    Sam Riley gets Ian Curtis's stage presence right on the money, though the vocals don't seem to match. Really a fantastic film about a fantastic band. This really does a lot to explain the Curtis mythology.
  • allformat
    October 8, 2009
    allformat
    Nothing really struck me as amazing about this film other than the great music and quality acting. I think I fell asleep halfway through while watching it on a plane.
  • goriot
    September 23, 2009
    goriot
    I liked how Sam Riley plays the Ian Curtis
    I knew he commited suicide , but I did not know the details
  • brocksssssnyder
    September 20, 2009
    brocksssssnyder
    i'm starting to hate touching biopics about dead musician/poet/heroes but when it's joy division i try to put all that aside. it slowed as it progressed but at least he looked exactly like ian curtis. i can't say i was disappointed.
  • closedmouth
    August 15, 2009
    closedmouth
    One of the most pretentiously self-satisfied films I've ever seen. Corbijn seems to think that showing "what really happened" is the height of artistic endeavour. It's even in black and white. Seriously.
  • Topsie11
    August 11, 2009
    Topsie11
    i dont have any idea about this band called Joy divison but after watching this film now im looking forward to hear more of their songs and i must say ian curtis is a beautiful singer and song writer...this film gives justice for the band and for ian curtis life.. simply shows th...( read more)at life arent beautiful =( m so glad i got to see this movie..as a music lover its enjoyable to watched..so saD that ians had a sad decision to end his life..this was Very good band, too! RIP Ian Curtis.Love the scene when Debbie and Ian first meet .. when he said'' you can't be part of my gang if you don't smoke''
  • ronansprake
    August 4, 2009
    ronansprake
    Slightly biased by my love of the music, it's still a moving and tough biopic
  • wetground
    July 31, 2009
    wetground
    anton, tu é foda. impressionante.
  • 76Majikat
    July 30, 2009
    76Majikat
    A little slow moving, but this biopic of Joy Division?s front man Ian Curtis' life is realistic with some enjoyable performances.

    I don?t claim to be a Joy Division fan and therefore can?t comment on the accuracy shown by the Actors in this film. For me though Samantha Morto...( read more)n really stood out in this.

    Worth the watch, but fairly drawn out.
  • g0y
    July 28, 2009
    g0y
    I've heard of Joy Division before, never heard their songs, now I have thanks to this film, and I like 'em now.

    Average biopic it seemed, I didn't know about Joy Division or Curtis before seeing the film, so average was all I could see: people's rise to fame brings in temptation...( read more)s in matrimony, economic problems, the different thing is that Curtis wasn't into illegal substances (As far as the film goes), but legal prescriptions because of his condition. And what seems to be the ongoing problems are the marital issues. I can't ever stand to see this in film, it frustrates me too much. Spouses don't deserve that treatment, blah, blah, blah, I ain't gonna wine.

    Acting fit for the parts, the photography is in fine black and white, the story was long, chronicling Curtis when he was first interested in what would later become what he was known for, up until the end of it all. The random humor throughout made my day.
  • VelvetDecay
    July 8, 2009
    VelvetDecay
    Molto toccante. Anton Corbijn ha fatto un ottimo lavoro: è riuscito a restare fedele al libro di Deborah senza diventare invadente, e senza privare Ian della sua dignità.
  • siavashasadollahi
    June 28, 2009
    siavashasadollahi
    I love new noir films, and this was one of the best I've ever seen, though I didn't like the music of Curtis, but if you're not watching to know more about Ian Curtis as lead singer of Joy Division, it is a good one as a movie.
  • darknessdwellsatasha
    June 27, 2009
    darknessdwellsatasha
    very, very killer film..and i am a true fan of Joy Division
  • Bremaine
    June 27, 2009
    Bremaine
    Wonderful film. I never heard any of Joy Divisions music, but I still really enjoyed this movie.
  • deadmansshoes
    June 19, 2009
    deadmansshoes
    The biopic of tragic Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis, the directorial debut of famous music photographer Anton Corbijn is beautifully shot in a gorgeous, grainy black & white hue, many stills from this film would make great photographs - understandably.

    This is an unflinchingly...( read more) frank look at the life of a music legend outside the music. Naturally the music plays a key role in things and we are treated to a great deal of it, both in the form of Curtis' influences like David Bowie and in the form of his own work.

    Newcomer Sam Riley is more than up to this task as he and the other cast members who make up the rest of Joy Division all perform the music themselves and Riley gives a hauntingly eerie rendition of Ian Curtis. It is almost like Riley was possessed by the ghost of Curtis; truly excellent work.

    It is not just in the music where the film shines, Sam Riley adds a soul and humanity to the enigma of Ian Curtis; a man at odds with himself and unafraid to play it in a rather straight and unsympathetic manner. Much like Amy Ryan?s performance in Gone Baby Gone, by refusing to be cloying and seek out some easy sympathy from a character that doesn?t demand it, they make the role more compelling and ironically enough it?s easier to lend sympathy or interest in the characters, flaws and all. One of the most truly remarkable breakout performances I have seen from an actor in some time.

    Samantha Morton does great work as Ian's wife (who wrote the book which the movie is based and served as a producer), often a role that gets overlooked in musical biopics or glossed over but here it is given a great deal of work and care to make you truly care for her as well as finding yourself not so much sympathizing with, but fascinated by Ian, the conflicted genius who is the main focus of the film.

    As a casting aside I found it funny that Toby Kebbell played the role of music manager legend, Rob Gretton, while his Dead Man's Shoes co-star Paddy Considine also played Gretton in Michael Winterbottom's hilarious Twenty Four Hour Party People. Kebbel was actually better than the excellent Considide, I might add, no small feat. He has the attitude and the humour nailed down, and I think he committed himself more to the transformation which was truly remarkable when lined up against his meek and vulnerable performance in Dead Man's Shoes.

    Winterbottom's film also dealt with the rise and fall of Joy Division (albeit in a briefer fashion) and it handled the death of Curtis in a far more distasteful fashion, if you ask me. I found that moment rather insulting and cheap, which was a great disappointment as the rest of the film contained a lot of humour but never anything beyond the truth of the moment; if a moment was obviously funny then that translated in the film. There is nothing funny about Ian Curtis' death and Corbijn displays this. Understanding this is not a moment to play lightly, he takes his time building up the scene and creating something genuinely affecting, and when the moment comes he shows restrain and looks away; it's not something we, the viewer, needed to share. The use of Joy Division's haunting "Atmosphere" leads us away from the scene and plays out for the films finale, offering an apt requiem for a talent lost before his time.

    Control as a whole shows restraint and respect and a sense of reverence whilst refusing to fall into the musical biopic pitfall of painting the protagonist as a saint just because they are great musicians.

    As the end credits roll, the film bows out with an energetic and vibrant cover of Joy Division's Shadowplay by Las Vegas rockers The Killers, a strong indicator that Curtis' legacy lives on and the influence can still be felt over twenty years after his death.

    A fantastic film, one of the finest, bravest, most artistically assured musical biopics I have ever seen and one of my favourite films of 2007.
  • exureimundo
    June 16, 2009
    exureimundo
    I thought this was really good. I don't know details about Ian Curtis' life besides the suicide part, but Joy Division will probably always be one of my favorite bands. And I should probably stop comparing biopics to other biopics, but this was a zillion times better than "24 Hou...( read more)r Party People". I wonder if that telephone number really was in his copy of "Join Hands", the Siouxsie and the Banshees lp they showed in the movie...
  • mudcore
    June 14, 2009
    mudcore
    sad movie. though i'm not familiar with joy division music, it's a good watch. plus the black and white stuff, it reflects the emotion of the lead character.
  • 89Richter
    June 7, 2009
    89Richter
    Realmente una visión analista del director. Un ran reflejo del fenómeno de la banda. Buena fotografía.
  • TheNarrator
    June 5, 2009
    TheNarrator
    Powerful, emotional and moving. It's not crucial to be a Joy Division fan to watch this film -it obviously helps if you know who they are- but the film explains itself well and gives you enough background information to be able to follow the story.

    Sam Riley is superb as Ian Cu...( read more)rtis, not only is there a physical resemblance, but also one in both sound and song. He is definitely the star of the film.
  • HorrorMovieCinema
    June 3, 2009
    HorrorMovieCinema
    Ian Curtis is a quiet and rather sad lad who works for an employment agency and sings in a band called Warsaw. He meets a girl named Debbie whom he promptly marries and his band, of which the name in the meantime has been changed to Joy Division, gets more and more successful.
    ...( read more)
    Even though Debbie and he become parents, their relationship is going downhill rapidly and Ian starts an affair with Belgium Annik whom he met after one of the gigs and he's almost never at home. Ian also suffers from epilepsy and has no-good medication for it. He doesn't know how to handle the feelings he has for Debbie and Annik and the pressure the popularity of Joy Division and the energy performing costs him
  • fernandobravo5
    June 2, 2009
    fernandobravo5
    Historia verdadera: los dramas de la vida de Ian Curtis.. para los amantes de los dramas y de la musica en general
  • rojastortu
    May 22, 2009
    rojastortu
    Movie was ok, but it just kept me reafirming that Joy Division was one of the best bands ever alive. They selected their greatest songs and I couldn't retain my excitement when they began playing, specially with Love Will Tear Us Apart (perfect song). Events like Ian Curtis's dea...( read more)th happen just when you are beginning to regain faith in music, just to be dropped once again.
  • FarOutBoyScout
    May 16, 2009
    FarOutBoyScout
    joy division rock so it be good to c what happens in front man ian curtis's life
  • lupaup
    May 12, 2009
    lupaup
    Muito bom o filme, mostra a história de um artista do rock como nenhum outro!
  • ahhh1989
    May 2, 2009
    ahhh1989
    I normally don't get into these sorts of films because I already know how they end, but I got into this one. It's not an easy film to watch, but it's a top-notch piece of filmmaking.
  • swingerlady2gud
    April 22, 2009
    swingerlady2gud
    sam riley is spectacular in the leading role but the movie doesn't offer much besides what is general known about joy division. perhaps because they didn't have the chance to achieve so much in only 4 years of being.
  • danieljparsons
    April 21, 2009
    danieljparsons
    "I never meant for it to grow like this. When I'm up there singing, they don't' understand how much I give, and how it effects me. And now they want more. They expect me to give more. And I don't know if I can. It's like, it's not happening to me, but someone pretending to be ...( read more)me. Someone dressed in my skin."

    A beautiful looking and extremely well acted biopic of the introverted Ian Curtis, the singer of Joy Division, who took his own life in 1980. I find myself with very little to say about Control, not because it's not stunningly made - because it is - I just don't have the eloquence to adequately describe how it has made me feel. Sam Riley is terrific as Curtis - he doesn't imitate him (in certain instances he both looks and sounds like him, more often he doesn't) but makes the role his own, as he should, and somehow remains essentially likeable throughout. Samantha Morton broke my heart. She is wonderful, and considering the book the film is based on is written by the person she plays (Deborah Curtis), she never overshadows the film. She conveys what is like to have so much love for someone that is simply not returned in the way she wants. The photography is gorgeous, the music is of course amazing, the end is painful to watch. This is an excellent film.
  • thecrazygypsy
    April 12, 2009
    thecrazygypsy
    De pelis sobre biografias, esta es una de las mas honestas a las que he asistido. Excelente debut de Anton Corbijn como director. El manejo que le da a la escena de la muerte de Curtis es fascinante.
  • RisingSunce
    April 8, 2009
    RisingSunce
    It was good, I just feel like there was something missing to give us the whole impression of what was going on in Ian Curtis life regarding Joy Division. I needed that part of his life a bit more.
  • niltoncs
    April 2, 2009
    niltoncs
    Belíssimo histórico da vida de um dos maiores compositores e sua excelente banda...
  • FearOfFragility
    March 14, 2009
    FearOfFragility
    The only movie that has ever put me anywhere near to crying, by the end of this I was blubbering like a baby. Stunning
  • Zhuliya
    March 7, 2009
    Zhuliya
    One of the best biopics I've ever seen, as well as a breathtaking film, Control is not just another film about a band and the tragic death of its lead singer, it is a passionate and delicate work about the drama of a man, trapped between two worlds and unable to cope with the lif...( read more)e he has chosen. Unbelievably beautiful.
  • littlecharmer1959
    February 27, 2009
    littlecharmer1959
    Being a fan of both Joy Division and of Anton Corbijn's photographic work I had high hopes for this.
    Whilst not being disappointed I felt some points in the story were rather rushed or in some cases not explored at all. The performances are all rather good but to me it's a case...( read more) of the beautiful cineamatography and brilliant soundtrack overshadowing the story.
  • pjcardo
    February 24, 2009
    pjcardo
    A ver, e sobretudo a ouvir.
  • refused84
    February 17, 2009
    refused84
    Possiblement le meilleur biopic que j'ai vu. Le noir est blanc est vraiment élégant, les acteurs sont très, très bons, le tout est fait avec un respect total du sujet, la cinématographie est bien foutue, l'émotion bien rendue...je pourrais continuer à en faire l'éloge longtemps, ...( read more)mais je vais seulement dire: À voir, que vous aimiez Joy Divison, ou pas.
  • ArTsyChiCa
    February 17, 2009
    ArTsyChiCa
    Brilliant movie of a brilliant man.
  • puuulo
    February 16, 2009
    puuulo
    Wonderful cinematography and great acted. Anton Corbijn did an amazing job directing his first feature film. I wasn't a Joy Division fan and I didn't know a thing about Ian Curtis's life, so I don't know if it helped or not. Anyway, I think most of people will enjoy it, being a f...( read more)an or not.
  • AgentLexi2132
    February 15, 2009
    AgentLexi2132
    ''When you look at your life, in a strange new room, maybe drowning soon, is this the start of it all?''

    A profile of Ian Curtis, the enigmatic singer of Joy Division whose personal, professional, and romantic troubles led him to commit suicide at the age of 23.

    ...( read more)>Sam Riley: Ian Curtis

    Director of Control Anton Corbijn has finally joined the ranks of his contemporaries Spike Jonze, Michel Gondry, and Mark Romanek in directing his first full-length feature. No one could have been a better choice than this still photographer and music video director of cutting edge bands like Depeche Mode, Echo and the Bunnyman, and, of course, Joy Division themselves with the video for Atmosphere albeit eight years after the death of front-man Ian Curtis. Corbijn has the sensibilities to craft a gorgeous biographical study of a man on the verge of newly found greatness and the humanity of his soul, which keeps him from taking that next evolution beyond. The cinematography is glorious in its stark, high contrast, black and white, the performance scenes feel realistic and genuine, and he captures divine performances from every cast member.

    Joy Division's lead singer, as portrayed here: I will admit to knowing next to nothing about the band before viewing, possibly enhancing my pleasure as there were no trace of annoyance when something didn't mesh to reality, was not your run-of-the-mill rockstar. Ian Curtis was an everyman like you and me, a fallible creature, both confused and naive in his young age. Marrying so early in life, Curtis had a child, a day job, and a gig fronting one of the hottest bands of the time. What started as a way for expression, however, soon becomes another slice of trouble in his already crumbling life. When diagnosed with epilepsy, a condition for which he once tried to help afflicted gain employment, he begins a regiment of medication concoctions, hoping to find a combination to alleviate the suffering. Mixed with his late night shows and high alcohol consumption, both frowned upon by his doctor, Curtis maybe the only star I know to have fallen into his psychological descent from prescribed drug use. Ever more depressed as his love blossomed between his wife, child, and mistress, Curtis could never find the balance to deal with the fame and the fans. After all he gave in life and on-stage, they just had one answer for him...We want more.

    ''I wish I were a Warhol silk screen hanging on the wall. Or little Joe or maybe Lou. I'd love to be them all. All New York's broken hearts and secrets would be mine. I'd put you on a movie reel, and that would be just fine.''

    Truthfully, Sam Riley is quite a find. Whether his talent is real or just catered perfectly to this role, I'd like to believe the former...he is amazing. Totally embodying Curtis, Riley's face is never shown with a shred of "acting" noticeable. His blank stares, the weak smiles, the crying, and the pain of his seizures all come across as though we are viewing a documentary. Complete with Curtis' unique dance style, it is like watching history as it happens. Credit the rest of his band mates for adding to the realism in each performance sequence, as well as the supporting cast. I was a bit unimpressed at first with Samantha Morton as his wife Debbie, but that feeling quickly went away. What appeared juvenile and trying too hard to play 20 years old eventually came together as a pretty solid piece of work. Always great, Morton shines when the world begins dissolving around her, but her love for her husband never wavers behind the tears and anger. Besides her, mention also needs to be made for Toby Kebbell as manager Rob Gretton. Starting as comic relief, his character plays a tremendous role in Curtis' life. While the band seemed to be unable to deal with their singer's affliction, Kebbell stays by his side throughout, doing what he can to try and keep him together.

    The greatest praise I can give additionally to this film, above even the great performances from the cast, is that it feels like it was really made in the early 80s. It has a BBC2 clunky-kitchen-sink quality ('Come to bed Ian'), that I think may be accidental, but to someone like me who lived in the UK at the time, is more redolent of the era than the twin-tub, pay-phones, and Andrew's Liver Salts in the medicine cupboard combined. It took me to another era of film-going altogether.
    More plaudits for letting the actors perform the music themselves, adding authenticity to their roles and an evenness to the musical performances. Even more plaudits for having 'Love Will Tear Us Apart' as the only exception to this. Listening to Ian Curtis sing the words he wrote about the situation unfolding on screen before us in the sharpest of focus brings the pain he felt cutting clearly and directly into the hearts of everyone who watches this perfectly melancholy film.

    Control is a remarkable achievement that succeeds by adhering to the one aspect I like in biopics, keeping it simple. We are only shown a few years in his life, the meeting of his wife and band mates and the short-lived tenure of what was Joy Division. This capsule in time is allowed to evolve and flesh out all the emotions and turmoil that went on. From the highs to the lows, the comradery to the adultery, Curtis is always portrayed as the tragic hero he was. Everything his music did for its listeners, all the power and hope it instilled in the fans, came at a steep price. Draining himself of life and confidence and love, Curtis was never going to be able to keep the ride going into the US. Corbijn gets every moment correct, straight through to the inevitable conclusion. Never trying to shock us, he treats the ending with immense compassion and love. Subdued and heart-breaking, Curtis' demise is allowed to be as beautifully touching as the rest of his shortly spanning time among us, a candle blown out too early, too soon.

    ''So this is permanence; love-shattered pride. What once was innocence, has turned on its side.''
  • saturn611
    February 12, 2009
    saturn611
    about joy divison-singer
  • yrsocrazy999
    February 10, 2009
    yrsocrazy999
    sam riley muito bem no papel, apesar de algumas atuações nada convincentes, como a deborah de samantha morton (na verdade, ou a atuação foi ruim ou a sra. curtis era bem chatinha...). o p&b também é legal... e é impressionante como "transmission" ficou melhor que a versão origina...( read more)l! um bom filme, mas eu esperava mais.
  • piangers
    February 9, 2009
    piangers
    love will tear us apart
  • leoocunha
    January 27, 2009
    leoocunha
    Tudo muito bem feito. Atuacoes excelentes. Mas falta um envolvimento emocional. Curtis eh mais um blaze que alguem sensivel. Sua morte no filme nao me toca tanto.
  • SPILT
    January 26, 2009
    SPILT
    If you haven't seen this.. GO SEE IT NOW...... very nice movie on Joy Division frontman.....

Summary

Control Summary