A Truly Personal Documentary About a Musician’s Journey

Read Time:2 Minute, 54 Second

MOVIE REVIEW
Anonymous Club
–

Genre: Documentary
Year Released: 2022
Runtime: 1h 23m
Director(s): Danny Cohen
Writer(s): Danny Cohen
Where To Watch: opens theatrically in LA & NYC on July 15th, national theatrical rollout to follow.

This is a notice to anyone reading this; you don’t have to know what something is about to watch it and enjoy it. When I requested this screener, I didn’t know who Courtney Barnett was, but I have a soft spot for documentaries, so I figured why not. I’m glad I did; I gained so much appreciation for her music and what goes on behind the scenes of touring. The film features a raw look at life for a musician while working from day to day.

Danny Cohen, director of several of Barnett’s music videos (as well as videos for King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard), was the driving force behind the film. Cohen talked Barnett into doing the film and keeping an audio diary of her life, struggles, and successes while making her way through the world. It was one of my favorite moments in the film because of how raw and unscripted it was “and here’s a toilet.”

Barnett is a brilliant artist, shown through her music, poetry, and view on life in general. Relatable and fragile, yet with an undying strong passion for her craft, Barnett lets us have a peek into her world through a beautifully shot (on a 16mm camera) film that I couldn’t be happier to have seen.

One of the film's most exciting aspects was watching Barnett's evolution and the relationship between her and the camera. It was endearing, to say the least; Cohen’s comments in his statement on the film were perhaps the most telling of it all. While I won’t share the entire message, this quote stuck with me, and I felt it was worth sharing. “Courtney was like a hawk—in a completely endearing way, of course. I think. There'd be a whole bunch of noise in a room, and she'd sit, sometimes on the fringe of the group, sometimes right in the middle—but she'd just sit there. And listen. And observe.” That says a lot about both director and star. The mutual admiration between the two made this film work; it allowed this story to be told and made them both better.

Personally, the film allowed for some personal growth for me as well. While I’ve never been accused of having a narrow taste in music, this project has allowed my preferences to grow exponentially. One of my favorite aspects of reviewing films “professionally” is the bonus of diving into so many artists, not only cinema but music. From Barnett, Damn the Witch Siren, Giant Drag, and even the music of TAKE ME TO THE RIVER: NEW ORLEANS (to Elvis from the incredible soundtrack of the 2022 film, although that was different.)

For more reviews and my YouTube channel, please visit linktr.ee/Overlyhonestmoviereviews

Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. Find my social media accounts on most platforms simply by searching Overly Honest Movie Reviews.

I’m always happy to hear from my readers; please say hi or send me any questions about all things movies.