The Killing Joke - I never liked it. Just another noisy band with an unpleasant voice. If the voice annoys me, the song pushes the "Ignore!"-button. So my question to this documentary was: Why the hell is The Killing Joke - moderately - famous? It delivers some answers, tells a story of obsession, drama, music press fodder, the power of a strong public image and enigmatic lyrics. My ignorance of The Killing Joke probably worked in my favor, as they didn't tell me anything I did already know. For me this movie was a new and interesting vignette of 20th century pop culture.
The KJs obsession with the occult is a central theme of this documentary. It motivates them, it unites and divides them. But don't let all the mumbo-jumbo about "magic" repel you, just see it as an important plot device - as that it works quite well for this movie.
Aleister Crowley, the embodiment of modern occultism, was a funny guy. Even when he was deadly serious with the things he did, you can look at it all as a very elaborate kind of joke. Therefore it absolutely makes sense that KJ's Singer, Jaz Coleman (another JC), who actually considers himself to be a great magician and a successor of Crowley, stylized himself as a court jester, a joker. It's all a big joke. But it's also real. Placebos are real. Faith can make it real. If somebody takes a placebo, but he is convinced that it's a poison pill, he can actually die. Some jokes can kill you.
Did magic work for the KJs? They sure think it did. Did it work for me? No. I checked out some of their better known titles, but I'm still: You sold your soul for THAT? Seriously, bro, you must be joking!
Yes, this documentary should have been 60 minutes shorter, more concise, more effective. It would have been much better, more attractive to a wider audience. As it is, it will not leave much of an impact outside of Killing Joke's parish. And that's too bad. I'd love to see more documentaries like this, real efforts to tell astonishing tales about unique bands. A documentary about the great Alien Sex Fiend. Or about King Kurt - answering the question: "Does flour work?"
