review: WORK SERIES: MUSICIAN

Facets  //  Buy from Amazon.com A cinema verite look at the everyday life and especially work of avant-garde jazz musician Ken Vandermark. From his Chicago basement studio to the stage Vandermark explains his passion for creating challenging relevant music while also making rent. Musician is the second in the Work series a set of independent documentaries designed to create an on-going record of the American worker. I've recently become quite interested in documentaries (perhaps a bit of sanity amongst my penchant for campy b-movies), and the synopsis for this film tickled the fancy of something inside my head. There's something so fascinating and inspiring about someone who is wholly dedicated to whatever their passion is (in this case, improvisational jazz), and to be able to peek into their lives and see the determination they chase their lifedream is fascinating. Ken Vandermark is a machine - this guy lives, eats & breaths music, and that point is made crystal clear in a very soft & subtle fashion by the filmmakers - they don't beat you over the head with trite narration or ego-stroking reminiscing. Instead, you get a fly-on-the-wall documentary that goes along for the ride, from the lonely writing process in the basement to the packed theater performance with the sax squealin'... A brisk 60 minutes, but entertaining from start to finish - definitely recommended. Video The widescreen transfer is nice and clean from start to finish - creative documentary filmmaking makes for some creative liberties with the framing of shots and zoom, but all work towards the overall presentation of the film. Audio Dolby Digital mix is solid throughout, delivering both the discussions and the music in fine form. Extras deleted scenes & performances essay by jazz legend Peter Brotzmann trailers Closing Thoughts Fascinating, mesmerizing glimpse into one's man creative journey