It’s often noted how David Bowie’s unexpected — and utterly gutting — death in January 2016, just two days after his 69th birthday and the release of final album blackstar, was the start of the societal decay we’re still experiencing nearly a decade later. Today (January 8), the iconic musician would have turned 78, and The Brattle in Cambridge is raising a glass to the surrealist world he created with two screenings of Brett Morgen’s wonderful 2022 estate-approved documentary Moonage Daydream.
Here’s how the Harvard Square cinema serves it up: “With our recently installed 7.1 sound and new 4K laser projector, we’re excited to present Brett Morgen’s phantasmagoric collage documentary about one of the 20th (and 21st) century’s most mercurial and charismatic artists, David Bowie, in celebration of his birthday.”
Vanyaland film editor Nick Johnston raved about the doc when it was released a little more than years ago, noting that this is not a traditional rock and roll documentary, and that alone should be celebrated. And there is an underlying influence beyond the music, style, and impact, which can be appreciated even more in the present day.
Here’s a snippet: “…when you’re confronted with a documentary like the one Morgen’s made here, one is overwhelmed by sound and vision, but through the noise, an abstract yet profound clarity kind of emerges: This man transcended himself, and I can as well. Bowie admonishes us to never ‘waste a day’, which feels like a platitude until you realize that this was a man who wasted enough of them to gain awareness of that loss as the sands of time began to accumulate on the wrong side of the hourglass. Moonage Daydream, ultimately, is an exultation for one to live and to do the best they can to live as well as possible, and though one’s life might not be as flashy and odd as Bowie’s, it can very well be as profound.”
Read our full review below, and hit the “full screen” button in revisiting the doc’s official trailer.
‘MOONAGE DAYDREAM’ :: Wednesday, January 8 at The Brattle, 40 Brattle St. in Cambridge, MA :: 6 and 9 p.m., $15 :: Event info and tickets