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Sarah here, teaching English around the world. Living life and seeing things.
Nick Cave is an award-winning musician whose music is chilling, intelligent, and inspirational. Warren Ellis is his friend and bandmate; a multi-instrumentalist and musical auteur. This Much I Know To Be True is the story of bringing their latest albums — “Ghostseen” and “Carnage” — to life. The film is directed by Andrew Dominik and is a companion piece to his 2016 film, One More Time with Feeling.
The Men (And Women)
Nick Cave and Warren Ellis have a musical relationship that has created some of the most beautiful and creative music over the last 30 years. This documentary perfectly captures their creative genius, and how the two men come together to make music.
The film starts with Cave quipping about how he took the UK Government’s advice and “retrained as a ceramicist” during the COVID lockdown. We’re then given a somewhat long and awkward tour of his ceramics studio. Lockdown definitely hit everyone in different ways, and Cave creating a ceramic series about the life of the devil is certainly an interesting way to handle things.
Throughout the film, intertwined with the musical aspect, we get more of these small glimpses into the lives of both men; their homes, how they work, their hobbies. It adds an interesting human element, and something that we might not necessarily get to see in other situations. Although a lot of these scenes feel a little staged and awkward, and more like tours of their lives, it’s fascinating to see just what makes these musicians tick.
A particularly beautiful part, however, is in the recording of Marianne Faithful’s spoken word collaboration on their album. She is faced with health challenges, but that doesn’t seem to stop her. It’s a reminder of how strong and beautiful the love for art, and the need to create it, is and it is beautifully captured in a simple way.
The Music
Haunting. Gothic. Powerful. Diverse. Just some of the words that can be used to best describe the music throughout the film. Cave and Ellis have been creating music together for many years, and have created the soundtracks for films such as Lawless and The Road.
Their willingness to experiment and let the music flow through them is perfectly captured in these albums, and it creates a beautiful collection of things that come together to create something more charming. While the music might not be for everyone, there is at least one song in there that people will like, and it holds strong throughout; no one piece is weak, and they all work and flow together gracefully.
The Movie
Shot over 5 days at Battersea Arts centre in London, there is a simplicity to how the music is captured on film that is endearing and insightful. There’s nothing too showy to take away from the essence of the music, but the visuals compliment the style of Cave and Ellis perfectly.
The clean lighting and smooth staging don’t detract from the story that Dominik is trying to capture: how music is made, and how it is brought together. And the camera work is utilised well throughout. For some songs that are slower, a simple tracking shot lets you experience the piece in its entirety. For more lively pieces, the handheld camera that follows the musicians gives you a sense of being on stage with them and puts you in the middle of the music.
Each song is brought to the screen in an elegant and effortless way that really accentuates the beauty of the music.
Hitting the Right Notes
An enjoyable film that is a cross between a behind-the-scenes exposé, an art piece, and an intimate performance, This Much I Know To Be True is a simple and entertaining film that is easy to watch, and thoroughly enjoyable. It’s a must-see for both long-time fans of Nick Cave and also anyone who is a fan of good music and beautiful visuals.
This Much I Know To Be True had its US premiere at South by Southwest on Friday 11th March, and will be released in cinemas worldwide on 11th May 2022.
RELATED: Read our other SXSW 2022 review on Gillian Jacobs’s Disney+ documentary, More Than Robots!
Sarah here, teaching English around the world. Living life and seeing things.
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