I thought it best to wait a while until most people had a chance to see the documentary, Montage of Heck before giving it a proper review here on the site. I was so fortunate enough to receive the Super Deluxe edition to review. Instead of getting just my take on it as a super Nirvana fan, I asked my writer friend Charles to give an impression of the documentary from an outsiders perspective.
Here is Charles’ review:
Although I like Nirvana now, I have never been what you would call a “superfan.” My CD collection at the height of the band’s popularity in the mid 90’s consisted of The Bodyguard soundtrack and Ace of Base. The day Kurt Cobain died, came and went without any impact on my life. I do not know or particularly care about the Courtney Love conspiracy theories surrounding his death. To be perfectly honest, for a long time I thought that Kurt Cobain and Dana Carvey were the same person.
In Brett Morgan’s HBO documentary Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, the viewer is treated to a potpourri of visual and auditory delights. The use of Cobain’s old diary entries is a simple but devastating narration technique. Vibrant and gritty animation sequences give the viewer a glimpse inside Kurt Cobain’s mind. Interviews with his family, bandmates, and lovers give the rabid Nirvana fan intimate and sordid details into Kurt Cobain’s personal life.
In overhearing various conversations other people had about Kurt over the years, the one thing I gleamed from all of them is that Kurt Cobain lived a short, tragic life. What struck me most about Montage of Heck was that Kurt Cobain (and all of Nirvana) were complete goofballs with a great sense of humor. The comical jabs taken at Guns n’ Roses always made me chuckle. Watching this movie made me want to dust off that old CD of Unplugged. Kurt Cobain would have been a fun person to go out with for Mexican food. His life may have been short but I wouldn’t call his life tragic. Tragedy implies that you want pity, and pity was the last thing Kurt Cobain wanted from anyone.
– written by Charles Haslam
my review:
I would consider myself a fairly big Nirvana fan. As I’m sure you could have guessed by the reason I decided to start this website. Although being born in ’83 seems like an ancient fossil now, I was unfortunately too young to experience the impact of seeing Nirvana live in my teenage years. From that all of my information about Cobain and the grunge music as a whole comes from magazine articles, documentaries, and various books. When I first heard a buzz that there was going to be an authorized film made based off of his journals, art works, and demo recordings this immediately peaked my interest.
Several thoughts ran through my head before I saw this film. We are always drawn to the unknown, that’s part of human nature. However, we don’t always ask ourselves if there are some things that are better left to the unknown or just undiscovered. If Kurt were alive would he want us to dissect each area of his life like this? Should we?
Most of the other documentaries I’ve seen involving Cobain’s life either focused on his suicide or the Nevermind era. What I really enjoyed about this one was that the soul and psyche was really the main character of film. Throughout the film director Brett Morgen showed his comical side, empathetic side, and the connections that he had with his family. In the end it makes me miss Kurt even more. Not just as one of the most prolific rock artists of my generation, but for the person that just wanted to create, love, and be loved.
– written by Lauren M Brown
Montage of Heck Super Deluxe Edition includes:
- the Blu- Ray DVD + bonus interviews
- Montage of Heck: Home Recordings CD
- Hardcover Book
- Postcards, bookmark, poster, puzzle
- Cassette Tape of the Home Recordings
