William Shatner's Gonzo Ballet

On a cold night in Milwaukee high art meets pop culture as award winning choreographer Margo Sappington premieres her latest ballet, "Common People", set to the music of William Shatner and Ben Folds.

So, we have Shatner in his normal life... telling stories... then we set them to music by Ben Folds... and we add Henry Rollins... this already sounds pretty good, right? But wait! We then add some choreography to it, and we suddenly have a life story with punk music and ballet dancing. What the heck?

I really did appreciate the exposure of Shatner, the real Shatner. We all think of him as Captain Kirk, but this is a real human being with decades of stories and everyday things... and here are a few of those.

William Shatner involved in Ballet? What could that mean? When I first saw the title of this film, I immediately flashed to his Transformed Man album, which I actually knew little about, but considered a so-pathetic-it's-comedic specimen.

But something made me watch this film and I am very glad I did.

It took me a while to gain my bearings in the early part of this film. Was it a documentary or a performance piece? Exactly how did it relate to Shatner? But before long, all became clear. It starts with words by Shatner. He performs them to music created by (genius) Ben Folds and performed by Ben and some talented friends. Then Margo Sappington choreographs dances to these pieces.

The result is very entertaining, very thought provoking, and downright funny--in a good way. This is one of the best cinematic surprises in a long time. As the movie unfolded, I found each piece to be more entertaining than the last. By the end, I had numerous occasions to smile and quite a few laughs. Watching this film made me feel good.

And now I know more about how Transformed Man went so wrong. And I can respect Shatner as a performer. I need to get the album.

Why would I ever choose to watch this documentary? Well, it is because I bought a copy of the Ben Folds/William Shatner "Has Been". While it's definitely true that Shatner's earlier musical foray (the godawful "Transformed Man") were so terrible that it was only valuable as camp, "Has Been" has such amazingly good lyrics that the album took me by surprise. When I first heard it, I laughed--after all, it IS Shatner basically talking through the songs...until I realized how brilliant and insightful the songs were. The one that struck me the most was the song about the death of one of Shatner's wives (who drown in their pool a few years ago). The album is very self-revelatory and fascinating and very well-produced.

Apparently, a famous choreographer (Margo Sappington) approached Shatner and Folds about setting this album to modern dance! And, this is the purpose of this film--to show this dance and discuss how it came to be. You hear from Sappington, Folds and Henry Rollins, but most of the film consists of listening to Shatner muse and discuss his thoughts about the songs and their origins--all as you watch the dancers dance. While this might sound dull, it NEVER is. Very insightful and fascinating. However, before you go out and watch this film, get the album and listen to it a few times. Believe it or not, it's one of the best albums I've heard.