Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man

I was completely mesmerized by the performances in "Leonard Cohen I'm Your Man" and really liked the juxtaposition of his voice talking with other voices singing his songs. I saw the movie at the Sundance Film Festival and fell in love with his songs all over again. I thought that hearing about his life through his words and commentary was totally absorbing and I enjoyed every minute of it. On another level it also introduced me to artists that I didn't know that well or at all. I am now a huge fan of Rufus Wainwright's who is a perfect person to sing Leonard Cohen's songs. I thoroughly enjoyed myself and recommend this movie 100%!

First of all, this documentary focuses on a concert that was a tribute to Leonard Cohen, an artist and a poet that has been influential to countless others. This Sydney concert gathered a lot of talent that came together to celebrate his music. Lian Lunson, an Australian director, has taken the best tracks of the historical presentation that mixes well with the man it's paying homage to. Let the viewer be clear that for a better picture of who this man is and what he has done in his life, it will not be found in this movie. For that, anyone interested in Cohen's life must go somewhere else because of the limitations this medium had.

The life of Leonard Cohen is examined briefly as an on camera interview with him at his Los Angeles home. Several biographical bits of information are revealed during that conversation, but of course, it only covers the highlights of his life in sketchy details. One gets to know, for instance, about his early life in Montreal. The death of the father when Cohen was nine. His New York stay, at the legendary Chelsea Hotel, home of the cool people that influenced a whole generation. Then one learns about Mr. Cohen's introduction to Zen Buddism and his becoming a monk.

A curious note arises from the lips of Leonard Cohen's lips about being a notorious ladies' man, something he was always notorious for, and yet, how far from the truth it was. There is also a moment in which the poet reads for our benefit the introduction he prepared for one of his books being translated into Chinese, a culture that always fascinated him.

The concert itself is an excellent way to hear Leonard Cohen's songs as others interpret them. Rufus Wainwright sings three numbers to great effect. Antony makes a poignant appearance belting "If It Be Your Will", all tics and mannerisms, yet making the song seem new. Nick Cave has also two good moments interpreting "I'm Your Man", and "Suzanne", two of the songs closely associated with Mr. Cohen. Perla Batalla and Julie Christensen who back up most of the songs, are perfect in "Anthem". Martha Wainwright's take on "The Traitor" has a different edge when she sings it, yet it's one of the highlights of the evening.

The best is left for last. Bono, and Edge, who have been praising Mr. Cohen throughout the film come together to back him as he sings his "Tower of Song" in his own inimitable style. It shows a lot of generosity on his part leaving his own material to be reexamined by a younger generation that clearly loves him.

Lian Lunson shows she had the right idea in how to bring the concert into a movie that gives relevance to a man that had it all, Leonard Cohen.

This was a frustrating experience to sit through. Part concert film, part biography with historical footage & photos, part present day interview, these various strands seem to be struggling with each other. This was filmed primarily at a series of Leonard Cohen tribute performances organized by producer Hal Willner in Sydney, Australia during January 2005 under the banner of "Came So Far For Beauty". Many of the same artists had also performed similar concerts during 2004 in New York City and the UK. Interview clips with Leonard Cohen at his home in LA along with some archival photos and film footage are interspersed into the concert scenes.

The flow of this wasn't always very satisfying and there was one aspect that began to get more irritating the longer the film went on. The filmmakers begin sabotaging their own concert artists by editing/interjecting an occasional red sparkle/red sequin image over their performances, which you gradually realize is a foreshadowing of Leonard Cohen's own performance with U2 (filmed at a totally separate non-concert staged studio setting) to come at the very end of the film. It is like they're constantly saying: "Don't worry if you don't like this particular performance, Leonard Cohen himself is yet to come!". What kind of message is that to send in the middle of your film with other performers? Some songs are even interrupted in mid-performance by historical or interview footage and then when Leonard Cohen is telling some good anecdote we go back to another cheat sheet performance (many of the singers don't seem to know the lyrics, so their eyes and eyelids constantly have a downcast/lidded look as they look to their music stands for the words). Still, there are some terrific performances here by Rufus Wainwright (on "Everybody Knows", "Chelsea Hotel #2" & "Hallelujah") Martha Wainwright (on "The Traitor") Beth Orton & Jarvis Cocker (duet on "Death of a Ladies' Man) and former Leonard Cohen band alumni Perla Battala & Julie Christensen (they also lend terrific support for most of the other singers) on "Anthem" and with the greatest revelation being the single monikered Antony (actually Antony Hegarty of Antony and the Johnsons) giving a show-stealing rendition of "If It Be Your Will".

Leonard Cohen's & U2's seemingly mimed/lip-synced performance of "Tower of Song" comes as a big let down at the end. Even more frustratingly, the main concert's rehearsal clips show the rest of the singers rehearsing a group finale, which, after a search on the internet (see http://www.leonardcohenfiles.com/hw-sydney.html), I found out was the Sydney show's closing number "Memories" ("I walked up to the tallest and the blondest girl, I said, look, you don't know me now, but pretty soon you will, So won't you let me see, won't you let me see, won't you let me see…, your naked body.") which would have made for a much more humorous and rollicking finale but is sadly not to be seen in the film. A great opportunity lost but perhaps still a future possibility for a DVD down the road. Still, Leonard Cohen tells some great stories and Rufus Wainwright gets to tell his own personal "Leonard Cohen moment" story and Nick Cave gets to talk about his discovery of "Songs of Love and Hate", but I would rather have had a pure concert film or a pure interview/biography (or better yet, both separately!) rather than this hybrid which doesn't satisfy either craving completely. The good moments rescue this enough to bring it up to a 7 out of 10.

It was a great hybrid, fascinating snippets and tidbits. Allow the filmmaker her vision. I loved the performances, which are all endearingly flawed. Cohen's humility transcends luminosity. Antony's performance tapped like vigilantes in my ribcage. It is true that the interruptions were off-putting, but they can't be labeled as digressions inasmuch as Leonard Cohen was the true star. In fact, several people I spoke with commented that they would have preferred it simply be Cohen sung by Cohen, but I rebut: What about Cohen's legacy? His legacy ( his legends, his mythology) is just as important as the man himself. To see a variety of accomplished performers dare offer their renditions of Cohen is not only compelling, it intoxicates the senses and the imagination.

A must see for any Montrealer or admirer of LC or simply poetry.

Leonard Cohen is a master and this documentary is a fitting tribute to a legend. The audience at the Film Forum in New York sat in awed silence while the music washed though us and the lyrics cleansed our souls. Sometimes, the words cut painfully close to the bone, reminding us of our shared experience of being human.

Leonard Cohen goes to places most of us are unwilling to look at and brings back truth that no one can deny. Bono accurately describes it as going into the abyss and laughing at it. The artists performing his songs follow him there and brilliantly express the depth of his poetry set to music.

This is an outstanding film, documenting the poetic voice of our generation, and surely of many generations to come.