Overview
A film about the iconoclastic rock star Nick Cave was never going to be like other music documentaries. By structuring the narrative around fictional situations 20,000 Days on Earth gets us closer to understanding what makes this intensely private man tick than any conventional biography ever could.
While the film is presented as a single day it was obviously shot over a much longer time period. The 'day' is structured around two key scenes; an interview with British psychoanalyst Darian Leader and a visit to a reconstructed Nick Cave archive. Leader probes Cave about such topics as his first love, relationship with his father, deepest fears and the art of performing. These scenes, while at times revelatory, come across as a bit contrived. Why Cave is going to see a shrink isn't explained and although their conversations are apparently spontaneous they certainly appear scripted.
More successful are the scenes at the archives. Objects and photos seemingly picked at random reveal personal and poignant memories. Cave also stops in on his old friend and musical collaborator Warren Ellis for lunch. They discuss the transformative power of performing and Ellis quips that he's probably had more meals with Cave than he has with his wife.
While travelling to and from his appointments various famous people appear in Cave's car to extract different insights from him. Kylie Minogue is there, as is straight-talking British actor Ray Winstone and German musician Blixa Bargeld, who is a former member of Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. These scenes work well, possibly because there is an obvious ease between Cave and these apparitions.
Using voice-over Cave delves deeper into his creative process and the relationship he has with his adopted home of Brighton. It's obvious from his song lyrics that he's a poet but some of these musings are startling in their beauty and frankness. Scenes from live performances help build momentum towards the highly satisfying ending.
This is coupled with an atmospheric musical score by Cave and Ellis, in keeping with the brooding tone of the film. It's little wonder Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard picked up the directing award at Sundance and Jonathan Amos the editing award, this is an extremely polished film. It's not without it's shortcomings but you don't have to be a huge Nick Cave fan to enjoy 20,000 Days on Earth. It's a captivating, well-paced and evocative film. An out of the box portrait of a musician.