Directors: Mark Covino, Jeff Howlett.
Starring: Bobby Hackney, Dannis Hackney, Elijah Wood, Henry Rollins, Alice Cooper, Kid Rock.
Certificate: Not rated.
Running Time: 96 minutes.
Synopsis: A documentary on the 1970s punk trio Death and their new-found popularity decades after they disbanded.
A BAND CALLED DEATH probably won’t reveal any great big truths about the world that you didn’t already know. Its first half is a slow (at times too slow) portrait of a failed 1970s punk band who had all the makings of something that could have been successful if it had not been for ‘artistic integrity’ and a refusal to change their name. Overall it looks like the film will slowly fizzle out into bland obscurity. But then something happens and the film changes shape into a story about redemption, resurrection and faith.
The main interviewees are the two surviving members of the group that was formed by three black brothers from Detroit, Bobby and Dannis Hackney. It also – a little confusingly – has interviews from Kid Rock, Alice Cooper, Henry Rollins and Elijah Wood, which does little but detract from the brothers’ story. Luckily they are kept to a minimum and only sparingly appear. Bobby and Dannis are both quite funny and their joy of music constantly shines through. When you originally hear the title of the film and the description of it centring around a punk band, you could easily be excused for imagining these guys being sombre or anarchistic. But when it all comes down to it, these three guys are all about the love of their family and their unshakeable faith in what they are doing.
You feel the regret and heartache surrounding the group’s split, and the untimely death of their brother David. He is very much at the centre of the story, and, as the main creative force behind the group, he decided on the name and was the one who wouldn’t give it up even in the face of a lucrative record deal. He is also the one who keeps protecting the recorded material after the group disbands, which later proves the catalyst for the band’s unlikely rise some thirty years after their start, when their music suddenly and surprisingly catches on in the underground punk scene.
In the end, the film might not be one that you will end up remembering for years to come, but as it moves along, it is hard not to be charmed by its heart and unbridled optimism.
[usr=3] A BAND CALLED DEATH currently has no UK release date.
