Unofficial Trailer for Joy Division Movie Control Now on You Tube

On May 18, 1980 the world was the target of two natural disasters. Mt. St. Helens blew her top, spewing a pyroclastic cloud miles into the air and laying waste to much of the Pacific Northwest. Meanwhile, half a world away, the leader singer of an up and coming rock group out of Manchester, England slipped a noose around his neck and seemingly put an end to the promising career of Joy Division. Now, almost thirty years after that second disaster, Joy Division are probably bigger than ever and the subject of a film that won two awards at the recent Cannes Film Festival.

The film, Control, is shot in the same bleak monochromatic tones as Joy Division's haunting music. It was directed by renowned photographer Anton Corbijn and stars relative unknowns in all parts except for the wife of Ian Curtis who is played by Academy Award nominee Samantha Morton. According to reports out of Manchester the other three principal components of the legendary Joy Division-the members who made the unprecedented decision following Curtis' death to change their name from the already established Joy Division to the completely unknown New Order-are very happy with the results. The story of Joy Division and Ian Curtis' suicide has previously been filmed as part of the much wider story arc of Tony Wilson and Factory Records in 24 Hour Party People. While that movie carried the comedic overtones associated with the actor who played Tony Wilson-the hysterically funny Steve Coogan-Control looks to be a much darker and emotional film, much in keeping with the music of Joy Division, of course. Of course, the fact that the film is technically based on the memoir written by Curtis' widow, Touching from a Distance, should also give an indication that this won't be a laugh riot. I personally wasn't invited to the Cannes Film Festival premiere of Control for reasons I simply can't fathom-that's self-deprecating humor, folks, don't take it seriously-and so haven't seen it yet. But there is an unofficial trailer available on You Tube if you want to take a look at what the film promises to be. The downside is that this trailer is marked with French subtitles, but don't let that stop you, Jack!

There have been a remarkable number of films made recently about singers, some of which have struck a nerve and others that have been overlooked. Just as playing a prostitute seems a natural target with which many actresses hit the career bullseye of winning an Oscar, so does it appear that playing a famous singer is a surefire thing. (Unless your name is Kevin Spacey and you are also directing yourself as Bobby Darin.) It remains to be seen if an unknown actor playing a cult figure in a black and white film can work the same magic on Academy voters that far more established actors playing Ray Charles and Johnny Cash did, but it would certainly be some kind of utterly cosmic irony if Control receives the critical and commercial acclaim that turns Joy Division into the universally respected and enjoyed rock band that Ian Curtis seemed to fear it was on the verge of becoming 27 years ago.