This is an embarrassingly sycophantic tribute to Phil Spector who, it would seem, could not possibly be guilty of the murder charge against him due to his being a genius. Even the title of the film suggests a comparison to Michelangelo whose 1965 biopic is named 'The Agony and the Ecstasy.'
Because the music he produced is so divine, director Jayanti, chooses to play it uncut, with video over it of oold TV show performances, as well as the 2007 trial against Specter for the murder of Lana Clarkson. I would have preferred to hear more of that fascinating trial, and perhaps a bit more balanced clips of testimony that did have audio.
As to the interview portion of the film, in which only Spector speaks, yes, I'm sure there were no holds barred by off-camera interviewer/director Jayanti, but neither were holds offered. Jayanti is more than a fan; he is an obsequious supplicant who only wants to be in the presence of the man who compares himself to DiVinci and Bach. Hey, the wall of sound was nice, I grant, but really, get a grip! Spector even finds his work as a music producer far superior to the original compositions of George Gershwin. In comparison, the total of Spector's original compositions consists of 'Don't You Worry, My Little Pet,' and 'To Know Him is to Love Him,' for his group, The Teddy Bears, he co-wrote 'Spanish Harlem' (though in the film he credits himself with writing it), and he co-wrote 'You Lost That Loving Feeling.' He also co-wrote the failed Leonard Cohen album, 'Death of a Ladies' Man,' upon which he is silent in this film. There is no resemblance of proportion in Spector's mind or this film. In fact, it is a fascinating study in narcissism -- talk about the short man overcompensating. Spector resents John Lennon and Paul McCartney's knighthood for their entire body of work (Paul more than John since John had a kind sentence for him: 'You kept rock and roll alive for 2 1/2 years while Elvis Presley was in the Army.' Spector has only snide remarks for McCartney who publicly stated he didn't like Spector's work on 'The Long and Winding Road.' Spector considers himself an under-appreciated loner because he did not receive an honorary doctorate from some prestigious university. My jaw drops at his hubris. I guess his being inducted as a non-performer in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (not mentioned in the film) isn't worth bragging rights for this self-proclaimed industry outsider.
The omissions are glaring. Spector refers twice to someone named Phillip (adopted son who died of leukemia at age 9). This story is so much more compelling and telling than how Sean Lennon calls Spector the genius geniuses go to? There is no mention of his 1974 car crash and ensuing head injuries which necessitated over 700 stitches to his head and face. How might that have effected him? There is no mention of the second trial, the first having been declared a mistrial, which ended in the conviction of Spector for murder. Sure, this film was first released in 2008, before the second trial started, and though it seems to have not effected the outcome of the trial, a coda could have been added for this 2010 release at least referring to it. Instead we hear Spector talk about his producing 'My Sweet Lord,' for George Harrison, but he doesn't refer to his not noticing the song's glaring resemblance to 'He's So Fine,' another Motown classic by the Chiffons which topped the Billboard Hot 100 for 4 weeks in 1963. This led to a plagiarism lawsuit that Harrison lost to Bright Tunes Music Corporation. One would think Spector would have been familiar with this tune and nipped the accidental fraud in the bud. By the way, why do Spector's hands always shake so violently? Does he have Parkinson's or is he just nervous? Did Jayanti even notice?
Jayanti is so blinded by Spector's music producing accomplishments, he forgets to investigate any other sides to the man, including his history of violence. I'm not accusing Jayanti of unbiased documentary filmmaking; all documentaries are biased. But they are well researched and we3ll produced enough not to be so obvious. This film is merely a tribute to egotism, and the director doesn't even realize it.
The Agony and The Ecstasy of Phil Spector
Director: Vikram Jayanti
Interviewee: Phil Spector
Time: 102 min.
Opens September 10 at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco
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