Control

Control (2007)
[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0421082/]

The Gist:
Control is a minimalist biopic about Ian Curtis, the lead singer from Joy Division. Before this film I had vaguely heard of Joy Division but I didn' t know any of their music, and I didn't know anything about Curtis' life. I liked it that way because the film was something of an intense discovery on both fronts for me. The music is bare, stripped down, very primal, strikes a good cord, and as a character study Curtis is pretty fascinating. However, with only that considered you only have the ingredients of a good biopic. The execution, the performances, and particularly the editing elevate this rather effortlessly to a truly great film. Honest, if I ever taught editing classes I would use this as an example of an extremely engaging style. It allows each moment to breath and yet makes its cuts and transitions before the natural moment (in terms of a more traditional film aesthetic), which keeps things off balance but also cuts into the heart of each scene very well. That bizarrely efficient style mixed with the minimalism, the music, the powerful performances from the three leads... It was a shame when the film was over.