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Miles Ahead
Stars: Don Cheadle, Ewan McGregor, Emayatzy Corinealdi, Lakeith Lee Stanfield, Michael Stuhlbarg
Director: Don Cheadle
Dont expect a traditional Hollywood biopic.
Don Cheadles portrait of legendary jazz trumpeter Miles Davis is more of a riff on the life and times of Davis who, in the 1970s, is a drug-addicted recluse living in New York is shaken out of his solitary life when a (fictional) Rolling Stone journalist cons his way into Davis apartment and, in the process of writing a biographical piece, catalyzes the musician out of his solitary existence and into a series of wild invented adventures which include the musician pulling a gun on a CBS record company executive, a wild car chase and flashbacks to the trumpeter's first marriage.
Cheadle bids fair for auteur status as producer and co-writer as well as making his directorial debut and playing Davis. His powerful portrait of the troubled musician more than compensates for the frequently less than convincing storyline. His Davis is credibly sad and enigmatic in his actions and neatly referred to as being more valuable dead than alive, which is the fate of most artists.
Inevitably, and justifiably, too, Daviss unique musical bequest will last a lot longer in the memory than this interesting film
Alan Frank
USA 2015. UK Distributor: Icon. Colour.
96 minutes. Widescreen. UK certificate: 15.
Guidance ratings (out of 3): Sex/nudity 2, Violence/Horror 1, Drugs 2, Swearing 2.
Review date: 21 Aug 2016