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Dominican Rep. Who is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him?)
- Original title
- Who is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him?)
- Year
- 2010
- Running time
- 116 min.
- Country
United States- Director
- Screenwriter
- Cast
-
Harry Nilsson- Micky Dolenz
Terry Gilliam
Eric Idle- Ray Cooper
Randy Newman
Yoko Ono
Van Dyke Parks- Jimmy Webb
Paul Williams
Robin Williams- Perry Botkin
- See all credits
- Music
- Cinematography
- Producer
- Genre
- Documentary | Music Documentary
- Synopsis
- Nilsson is the demolisher. No other artist has dragged his talent through the mud the way he has, not even Keith Moon. Nilsson is the archetype of a mega-talented 60’s composer who could have had it all but decided to indulge in some of the most bestial intoxications rock has to offer and therein drowned his spirit. The story of a slippery slope, of an eternal party, of a gift destroyed: it’s all here, so we can weep. Nilsson is heaven and hell, that's the answer to the title’s question. No other artist has touched the sky and then dragged his talent through the mud the way he has, and we’re including Keith Moon in this particular seminal self-sabotage wager. Nilsson is the archetypal mega-talented 60’s composer who could have had it all but decided to indulge in some of the most massive piss-ups rock had to offer and therein drowned his spirit, shot his muses and put an end to it all. Let’s just say that the biggest piss-up John Lennon ever had, and what are still defined as Lennon’s "trackless days", well guess who was with him at the time? Harry Nilsson, yes sir: round after round, until the last person standing. The documentary kicks off with Dustin Hoffman (who got one of his first career breaks in Midnight Cowboy) announcing to the public during a festival that Harry Nilsson - who had sang the film’s emblematic song, "Everybody's talkin” – had died the previous night. This leads us into a classic, organized, comprehensive, trip through Nilsson's life, mostly explained by himself using excerpts from his unpublished oral biography. We see his beginnings, his former glory as a 60's Jimmy Webb-style hitmaker, his development into an intimate yet highly ironic singer-songwriter, his loves, the power of his voice, his close connection to melody, as well as his "fallen angel" years (as Terry Gilliam calls them): the decline, an endless party, a gift destroyed, everything: it’s all here, so we can weep. They talk about the man, his songs and his debauchery, all those who knew, admired and (occasionally) suffered him: Brian Wilson, Randy Newman, the previously mentioned Gilliam and Webb, Al Kooper, Van Dyke Parks, Yoko Ono, Ringo Starr, Robin Williams... A phenomenal work that will introduce you to one of the biggest musical talents of the twentieth century.
- Awards
-
2010: Writers Guild of America (WGA): Nominated for Best Documentary Screenplay
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