Film Review:

1998’s Velvet Goldmine

In honor of Pride Month and virtual 1998, I thought I’d spotlight one of my favorite music films of all time, Velvet Goldmine, directed by Todd Haynes.

It’s a love letter to the early days of glam rock, the subculture that sprang from it, and queer identity and sexuality.

It also posits the question: what if Oscar Wilde came from outer space and went on to be a forefather of glam? That’s part of the pervasive psychedelia of the film, but it’s only fitting considering the time and setting.

It is trippy – but a feast for the eyes at the same time.

Velvet Goldmine uses a framing device similar to that of Citizen Kane, with journalist Arthur Stuart finding out what happened to rock star Brian Slade after an infamous publicity stunt in which his persona Maxwell Demon (his Ziggy Stardust) is “assassinated” on stage. He interviews the people who knew him—or, rather, thought they knew him.

What grabbed me about this movie on very first watch is that it’s not so much about Slade himself, but the people around him and the impact he left on them and the culture. As a person though, he remains a relative enigma, in spite of Stuart’s dogged attempts to locate and talk to the man himself. In other films, I’d maybe consider that a weakness, but not in this case.

These other characters are just so striking that you almost forget that Slade is meant to be at the center of all this.

Speaking of vibrant characters, Velvet Goldmine has an excellent cast to bring them to life. Chief among them are Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Slade, Ewan McGregor as his musical collaborator/lover Curt Wild, and Toni Collette as his ex-wife Mandy (who, by the way, does an interesting, Madonna-like back-and-forth American/British accent that adds a whole other facet to her character).

The supporting actors also add much to the proceedings, including Christian Bale as Stuart and Eddie Izzard as Slade’s greedy manager Jerry Devine. I really like Bale in particular in this and think his role counts among his best performances. Because Stuart is not only a journalist but, as the viewer finds out, has a personal connection to the music that that has helped shape his identity.

It’s easy to say that a film is better to experience than to describe, but it is very much true in this film’s case.

As I described in a recent comment over at The Number Ones, it is a collection of hazy images and glam rock, but it is beautiful to watch. In fact, you could almost call Velvet Goldmine a musical of sorts, as it tells much of the story through clips and live shows performed by the characters. It has quite fine lines to walk with the narrative, and while other directors / writers might have tried pulling something similar off and failed, I think Haynes succeeds.

More than succeeds, he excels.

He’s daring in the way that he has characters quote Oscar Wilde extensively, blurs storytelling lines, and incorporates downright fantastical imagery. One of my favorite scenes involves two characters sharing a meaningful encounter and then seeing a spaceship! It has to be seen to be believed.

In spite of a warm reception at Cannes that included a prestigious Palme d’Or nomination, critics stateside felt more hesitant about it. Its 60% Rotten Tomatoes score attests to that. Then again, one could argue, isn’t that the way films so ahead of their time are typically received?

I mentioned in my TNOs post how David Bowie himself wasn’t enamored with the film as it was, considering it took Stardust (an unauthorized biography) and Angie Bowie’s autobiography as sources. It was in large part because of that why he declined to have his music used in the soundtrack. He claimed at the time to be making a movie of his own with his music and, well, that never happened. However, he ended up seeing Velvet Goldmine in the theater, and while he wasn’t a fan, he did say he liked the “gay scenes”. Fair enough! One of those scenes is what I consider the most emotionally impactful part of the film.

While it wasn’t completely successful with critics or Bowie at the time, it did gain a bit of a cult following over the years.

And, now, it has gotten the proper critical reevaluation it deserves. A restored version was recently screened at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival (which I found out literally a day after re-watching it earlier this month!) as part of its Retrospective Screenings. And there’s talk—and I hope it comes to fruition—that it will be added to the Criterion Collection next year. If that’s the case, guess who’s going to take advantage of that Barnes and Noble sale. I believe that, as music movies go, Velvet Goldmine is a near-masterpiece and right up there with Haynes’ other great work, I’m Not There. I encourage you to check it out if you haven’t seen it. (Fun fact: it was produced by Michael Stipe. Yes, that Michael Stipe.)

Now, here are three unranked songs I count as particular highlights:

1: Ballad of Maxwell Demon:

Brian Slade isn’t just based off David Bowie, but is a composite of other glam rock frontmen: Jobriath, Marc Bolan, and a dash of Bryan Ferry. Written by alternative rock band Shudder to Think, it was inspired by All the Young Dudes, which you can hear especially in the backing vocals. And lyrically, is there nothing more Bowie-esque than “I came down like water in the age of solar”? I still have no idea what that means, but it sounds cool.

Speaking of Bowie-esque, Jonathan Rhys Meyers does a fantastic job with singing in that specific Ziggy Stardust era cadence while still putting his own spin on it. Be on the lookout for Bowie creative collaborator/mime Lindsay Kemp in the clip.

2: Satellite of Love:

Maybe this puts my music snob cred in jeopardy, but I’ve never been too big on Lou Reed. I will say that, while I was not fond of his vocals, I did respect his songwriting abilities. But, even if Lou Reed/Velvet Underground isn’t a favorite of mine, Transformer is an unimpeachable album. This track, with contributing backing vocals from Bowie, is one of my favorites. Here, it’s incorporated in a literal whirlwind scene in which Brian Slade and Curt Wild pretty much fall in love in real time. It’s one of the more creative montages I’ve seen.

3: T.V. Eye:

This is where I have to include a NSFW label, as the clip has a bit of nudity. Like Brian Slade, Curt Wild is also a composite character, inspired by Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, and Mick Ronson.

Played excellently by Ewan McGregor, who pretty much walks away with the whole film in my opinion. He was a bit of an indie king at this point, having starred in Danny Boyle’s first three films, but Star Wars super-stardom was just on the horizon.

While I don’t think Velvet Goldmine bolstered any one actor’s career, you see why many of them went on to such great roles later.

tnocs.com contributing author shadowboxer122

What I think McGregor excels at with this scene is capturing Iggy Pop’s wild card onstage persona. Including a part in which he was originally supposed to moon the audience, but he goes one step further to show them his—ahem—assets. And vocally, he just nails it, doing that weird hiccupping thing Pop tends to do.

What are some of your favorite music movies, TNOCS? Any queer cinema recommendations you’d make? Or just whatever tickles your fancy, I’d love to read your comments below!

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