This film touched me in unexpected ways. I was laughing, crying, grooving, all of the above. I heard on a radio interview that the director was a personal friend of Wayne, I think that makes a big difference in this film because of how comfortable Wayne is to reveal himself. It isn't all factual, there's a lot of heart in this film.
I'd heard Wayne's music before, but it was so interesting to realize how much influence he had on some of the biggest hits in Jazz history. Beyond just his work, Wayne is such a profound poet with the way he speaks, as well as quietly funny. You really get the sense of his life unfolding before him. Even as a non-musician myself, I found myself relating to him or finding his wisdom about the world entirely applicable. He was truly a visionary in that he followed no rules.
The filmmaker does a remarkable job translating his personality. It's clear she understood him on a deep level and has found a way to make his mind accessible to us all. The film operates very much like a patchwork of people, images, and sound, almost like a memory with allusions to afro-futurism and classic cinema and literature. This film was so much more than I expected. Its more than just a music doc, it's a story about the journey of a soul.
I'd heard Wayne's music before, but it was so interesting to realize how much influence he had on some of the biggest hits in Jazz history. Beyond just his work, Wayne is such a profound poet with the way he speaks, as well as quietly funny. You really get the sense of his life unfolding before him. Even as a non-musician myself, I found myself relating to him or finding his wisdom about the world entirely applicable. He was truly a visionary in that he followed no rules.
The filmmaker does a remarkable job translating his personality. It's clear she understood him on a deep level and has found a way to make his mind accessible to us all. The film operates very much like a patchwork of people, images, and sound, almost like a memory with allusions to afro-futurism and classic cinema and literature. This film was so much more than I expected. Its more than just a music doc, it's a story about the journey of a soul.