Word: pianistically
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...credit, Burton faces up to Bernstein's manipulative and relentless sexual predations without sensationalizing them, as Joan Peyser did in her 1987 biography, Bernstein. But here too he withholds judgments: the spectacle of Bernstein and his daughter Jamie both falling in love nearly simultaneously with the German pianist Justus Frantz surely calls for amplification. The moving finger, though, having writ, moves on -- to the 1973 Norton Lectures at Harvard...
Divided into 32 vignettes, the film borrows its structure from Gould's first and most famous recording of Bach's "Goldberg Variations." Through a series of interviews, animated clips, and dramatized scenes from Gould's life, the film attempts to present a multi-faceted portrait of the pianist, but with mixed success. A common theme links the "Goldberg Variations" together, each revealing a new subtlety in the melody or voice in the harmony; in the film Gould is the main theme, but not every vignette contributes to the depiction of Gould's life or character. As a result of this...
...with colleagues, friends, and family give the film a quasi-documentary touch. The conversations soon reveal that even the people closest to Gould could not explain his numerous eccentricities, a fact that leaves many questions unanswered yet seems appropriate at the same time. Rather than trying to psychoanalyze the pianist, the film seems content to keep the theme of Gould open to interpretation. The film derives much of its humor from the ongoing bewilderment and second-guessing of his friends. Why did Gould insist upon wearing a scarf, hat, and gloves throughout the summer? Why did he set the piano...
Colm Feore, in the role of Gould, plays the pianist with a believable mixture of neuroticism, genius, and vulnerability. Especially noteworthy, the vignette "Gould on Gould" shows Gould interviewing himself. The quick-fire repartee and witticisms show the sharp, self-deprecating humor and intelligence that were his trademark. In other scenes Feore expresses the loneliness of a man who would drive alone at night, calling up friends from telephone booths to talk about death and regret...
...during the hyperspeed album opener, "So What," to his uncanny imitation of Miles himself on "All Blues" (harmon mute and all) Roney clearly is in his element. In part, Roney sounds so good because his open sound leaves plenty of room for the rhythm section to strut its stuff; pianist Hancock, bassist Carter and drummer Williams have never sounded better, tight as all hell and at the same time creatively lyrical. Carter's dazzling clarity, Hancock's chord driven, percussive flair, and Williams' inventive and at the same time remarkably structured use of his drum kits serve as the backbone...