R W
Posts: 268
Joined: 23/6/2006
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Four years ago, came the release of Sacha Gervasi’s brilliant rockumentary Anvil! The Story of Anvil, which followed the long and difficult comeback of the eponymous Canadian rock band, which is essentially a real-life Spinal Tap. One can see the influence of Anvil towards Malik Bendjelloul’s wonderful debut Searching for Sugar Man, which is about an unknown musician who has the talent to rival the likes of Bob Dylan.
Following the recordings of two studio albums in the early 1970’s, the American folk musician Rodriguez has become a forgotten relic who disappeared, only leaving mysterious rumours of an onstage suicide. When his first album Cold Fact surfaces in South Africa it becomes an instant favourite, when then led two South Africans to uncover the myths and mysteries that surround this cult figure.
For the length of eighty-six minutes, we see a touching story about this musician whose profession started during his time in the working-class streets of Detroit, in which his initial song writing dealt with the grittiness of those areas. Following the potential success that never materialised and the strangest rumour which said he’d either shot or burnt himself in front of an audience, Rodriguez’s music that is somewhat similar to Bob Dylan’s protest songs, was loved by those from South Africa, during its political crisis in the 90’s.
What’s most remarkable about the documentary is Sugar Man himself, as for the first of the film, Sixto Diaz Rodriguez is seen as a man on the front of an album cover, which was how he was seen by his fans; the music was known to those who listened, but the man behind it was a mystery. Once we are introduced the man himself, we see that he has no entourage, isn’t completely crushed by his initial failures and even doing work like construction, he’s happy at what he does.
With such fascination towards Rodriguez, you do wish the documentary was a little longer to delve more into his life, although the involvement of his three daughters is very charming. With a soundtrack that is a compilation of his albums, Bendjelloul successfully blends the music with beautiful shots of Rodriguez walking through the streets, and the great cityscapes of Detroit and Cape Town.
If you check out the life and music of Rodriguez prior to seeing the documentary, you might ruin the mystery it lays, but this will be a treat for music lovers.
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