Kurt & Courtney

Why this film was bad:

As a film that seemed like it was going to shed some light on the death of Kurt Cobain, it failed miserably. Nothing new about that subject appeared.

Why I liked it:

Almost everyone in this film seemed like a cartoon character ... if I didn't know this was a documentary, I would have thought this was a parody of one. *Almost* everyone seemed incredibly ridiculous: El Duce (the man apparently approached by Love to kill Cobain), ex-groupies, the nanny, Love's ex-lover, and the paparazzi who appear from time to time (especially the one with ridiculous mask over his head to protect his identity). Even Nick Broomfield, the director of the film, seems like a little bit strange ... this almost seems like a documentary that would take place in the world of one of David Lynch's films. In this respect, it is entertaining, and funny.

Kurt & Courtney (1998)

*** (out of 4)

Nick Broomfield's controversial documentary on the suicide of Kurt Cobain and the conspiracy theories around whether or not Courtney Love had him murdered. This is an incredibly strange documentary that has "witnesses" that no lawyer in the world would put on the stand but at the same time there's no question that the film will keep you glued to what you're watching. It's hard to say how much truth is found in this documentary or if everything here is nothing more that cruel gossip but I must say that it's rather obvious that Broomfield hates Love. There are a lot of problems with this documentary with the main one being Broomfield's attacks on Love at every chance he gets. It's clear he wants to know whether or not Love killed Cobain but I think there are quite a few cheap shots taken at her. The director is constantly saying how he wanted to use certain music but Love wouldn't allow it. Well, duh. Any music rights owner isn't going to let you freely use something so considering this film ran out of backers it's clear that they wouldn't have had the money to buy the music even if they were for sale. There's an episode at the end when the director could have asked her a question but didn't and instead gets on a stage and does it in public. Another cheap shot. With that said, the murder conspiracy is just something hard to wrap your brain around. Even if it was true, the witnesses here are cracked out heroin addicts so it's really hard to take what they say as the truth. You could argue that Kurt and Courtney were a part of this crowd, which I guess would be fair but I do wonder what motive some of these people had. It's clear that Love's father hates his daughter so his motives are certain. Others claim that they're terrified of Love yet they come out and say she murdered Kurt. No matter what your opinion on the truth is, it's hard to take any real evidence out of this documentary.

Is it objective? No. Is it informative? Yes. Is is accurate? Only as accurate as those talked to. Is it an interesting film? Without a doubt.

This should have been called "Trying To Make 'Kurt & Courtney", because he never succeeds in making a decent look at their relationship but rather an intriguing look at his struggle to get the whole thing off the ground. He ran into a lot of trouble via Courtney Love and of course threw in his feelings toward her quite obviously in the film.

Fans of Kurt may respect it, fans of Courtney are likely to despise it. I admit I am more a fan of Kurt than I could ever be of Courtney, he just seems a hell of a lot more real to me and she has scared me, long before this film made, with all the image make-overs and lame self-promoting publicity stunts. So I had no problem watching her get ripped into in this documentary. But a warning to hardcore HOLE fans, you may get extremely frustrated!

Like it or hate it, it won't bore you!

Nick Broomfield tries to clarify that absurd theory that says that Kurt Cobain was murdered. No one would actually believe that Kurt was killed because it is quite clear that his addiction and his depression killed him.

Anyway, Broomfield lets everyone to make their point, all those that defend the conspiration theory. But let me tell you, some of them, just like Courtney Love's father or that grotesque guy called The Duce are not reliable sources precisely.

Maybe Nick goes too far accusing Courtney. I mean, she's not Mother Theresa, but she isn't the root of all evil either. She's nothing but an arrogant and eccentric rockstar... just like most of people there in Hollywood.

Otherwise, "Who killed Kurt...?" has valious moments for all the fans of Kurt: early recordings, interviews with some of his relatives and childhood friends...

*My rate: 6/10

Not being particularly interested in either Kurt or Courtney, I was surprised how director Nick Broomfield managed to attract me to his film. His unique style gets us involved with the story that no one really knows where it's going. Not even the director himself. This may prove frustrating to those who have become accustomed to polished and hollywoodized type of film making, or those who are looking for a clear "angle". To me however, it was a wonderful gallery of many slices of real life: from director's own challenges to one of the best documentary film endings I've ever seen.

Hats off to Nick Broomfield for his uncompromising style and bravery.