Kurt & Courtney (1998)

You won't be disappointed!

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Even though I am a huge fan of Kurt Cobain and NIRVANA, This Documentary which is on the Conspiracy Theory of Kurt's death which suggests he was murdered and that his wife (Courtney Love) Hired someone to murder him. Now let me talk about this...Film... I feel as though Nick Broomfield didn't care enough to want this film to actually be good. It felt to me as though he was never truly invested in wanting to make a Documentary on Kurt Cobain's death, who's he there for? what's he doing? Did he plan ahead? Doesn't sound like he did. He goes through several people who simply feel like they're nothing but talking heads, people who're there to help make this film a Documentary with interviews. Of course he interviews Dylan Carlson who was Kurt's best friend which you'd think would be a great interview but as it looks, Dylan sounds as though he's either tired or he's on some sort of drug (Not saying Heroin), But I would like to say that this film isn't great. But it's something you can sit down with a group of mates to laugh at and MOCK for being so stupid,... This film is nothing more than a wreck loose of a "Documentary" I don't recommend it. This isn't a good documentary. 1/10, awful...Truly Awful.

So far I'm about half way through and I must say that this could have been a good film. As it is, its okay, but it misses the mark in several ways. He interviews people that you could meet at the mall or a flea market, no one important really. Maybe someone of import was at an industry party - where the producer would never be invited. I doubt he meets Courtney Love at all, she seems to be against this. There is NO music (so far) by Nirvana, or even Kurt (save some stuff he recorded at like 2 & 15 years old at his aunt's house). A doc about Kurt with no music by Kurt? Oh well. Even the band the producer goes to see who supposedly were influenced by Nirvana sounded like Misfits! Oh no.Also, he interviews some people who you think might have something important to say - but then, he can't put what they said in the film! What?! He sights British law issues (as he "films" for the BBC, or says he does) for some of the prohibition and for others he just leaves things out! Like the music. If this doesn't turn around considerably, I'd have to say miss this. If I ever do finish watching this and it turns into something good, I'll let you know. Although without any music by Kurt or Courtney, I seriously doubt it. * (of 5) at the half.Well, I saw the rest of the film. So the whole second half is pretty basic. He re-interviews Kurt's aunt and there's a guy who may have been hired to do something to Kurt, but (surprise!) his accusations couldn't be added to the film due to British libel laws. Oh well. He out accuses Courtney's dad of being a rotten father when its obvious that the man had been to hell and back with the woman. His main concern at that time was his granddaughter, and that she have a safe environment to grow up in. The doc's producer tells us he doesn't believe the conspiracies - that Love had anything to do with Cobain's death. Take that for what its worth. Given this, the later scene at an ACLU dinner doesn't make much sense. Courtney is shown to be capable of anything - the nanny that worked for the couple in Kurt's final weeks was obviously scared to say much on camera. He plays some tape of Courtney threatening the author of a "tell all" book, and its not a soft or veiled threat. This all culminates at the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) awards dinner where Love is a presenter and speaker. Before she takes the stage, the "extreme" "celebrity stalker", who had been in a scene earlier in the film saying he'd do anything to show Courtney's true colors - that he'd walk right up to her and ask if she killed Kurt or something, is at the ACLU function. He gets Love right on camera with the mic in her face! So this "extreme" stalker - who's partner in that early scene wouldn't even appear on camera without a mask! they are crazy guys - finally asks her a question for the producer of the film. Is it, did you have anything to do with your husband's death? Is it, did you threaten and/or assault journalists and writers? NO! He asks about a song he overheard when they went to her studio (where he was supposed to confront her and didn't!) and if she has any new members in her band! Extreme! Finally, the producer of the documentary, actually shows some real balls! After Courtney speaks, he gets on stage and basically calls the ACLU members gathered that they are hypocrites because they have a speaker who gives a speech about the importance of freedom of the press, while having intimidated, threatened and assaulted that very same press for writing and saying things about her that she didn't like. He does actually ask Love a question, and her answer is interesting. At the very end we DO get an original song. Unfortunately its by Kurt's aunt Mary, singing at a school where she is giving a talk about the horrors of drugs and addiction using Kurt as example. A very good message - I'm just not sure we needed to go through 90 minutes to get it.

Director Nick Broomfield makes a feeble attempt to retrace the troubled childhoods of grunge rock stars and one-time married couple Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love, but his 'investigative' work uncovering possible murder scenarios in Cobain's shotgun-induced suicide chews up the bulk of this threadbare documentary. Shorn of Nirvana's music due to Love's swift legal action, the film sounds just as hollow as all the inherent melodrama plays out, with Love's estranged biological father, Cobain's aunt, and a bankrupt private investigator Broomfield's only real attractions. There's also a quick, ridiculous interview with pseudo-rocker El Duce, who claims that Love offered him 50 G's to "blow Kurt's head off" (El Duce himself later dies in a mysterious accident--more conspiracy theories!). It's a hapless, hopeless piece of work, with guerrilla filmmaking tactics that make Michael Moore's documentaries look like Scorsese by comparison. NO STARS from ****

About halfway through this "documentary" I suddenly realized that the film may, in fact, have been a "mockumentary". Consider the following:* The director/interviewer kept saying to the audience "I wanted to play such-and-such a song by Kurt/Nirvana, but the record label wouldn't give me permission, so here is another song by some band you've never heard of" * The complete ineptitude of the celebrity stalkers, whose digital camera runs out of battery power just as they get close to the studio that Courtney Love is recording in... and later are so nervous at an official function (where they are pretending to be the media) that they actually fail to ask Courtney Love the required questions.* The appearance of El Duce and his band "The Mentors" singing songs about sex slaves while dressed in leather executioner's gear - and then discovering that HE'S the guy who claims Courtney Love asked him to knock off Kurt.* In-depth Interviews with drug addicts and other "low-life" who claim to have met Kurt.* Courtney Love's father interpreting certain Nirvana lyrics as being a reference to LSD (a questionable complaint coming from someone who used to work as a roadie for the Grateful Dead).* The interviewer/director getting up at an official ACLU function and speaking directly AFTER Courtney Love's speech. (didn't anyone actually notice?) As all these things came together, I honestly felt that the documentary was SO bad that it could not be anything else but deliberate. Armed with the theory that this was actually a mockumentary I was surprised to learn from a cursory internet search that the film is actually a real attempt at a documentary.Given the complete disaster that this documentary is, the only film that it could therefore be compared to is Ed Wood's "Plan Nine From Outer Space". The aimlessness and ineptitude of the documentary is so pronounced that it actually becomes quite entertaining after a while. As soon as El Duce and The Mentors came into the equation I was almost howling on the floor laughing. The conspiracies surrounding Cobain's death should have been treated seriously - but they are examined in such a way as to almost be an insult to those who made the conspiracies up, let alone the memory of Cobain.Neither Dave Grohl nor Krist Novoselic (the other two members of Nirvana) are interviewed or even seen throughout the film. Other major figures, such as Kurt's immediate family, the band's manager and other record company execs are also missing from the film. Instead we are treated to a cavalcade of background figures (most of whom are drug addicts) who claim to have met and influenced Cobain way before he was a star and who all, for some reason, think that it is possible that Kurt had been murdered.Actual important leads - such as evidence that Kurt's credit card was used a few days after his death - are mentioned but never followed up and are eventually forgotten in favour of tracking down the mysterious (and ultimately hilarious) El Duce and spending time with clueless celebrity stalkers who spend more time on camera talking about what they do rather than actually doing anything.In summary, the documentary itself is far more entertaining than the subject it purports to be investigating - but entertaining only because of its chaotic and misguided interviewer who interviews all the wrong people and investigates all the wrong theories. It is about as compelling as driving past a flaming car wreck that had run over and killed a circus clown.