This 1985 production from director Shirley Clarke, a pioneer in the American independent film movement of the late 1950s and '60s, is a loosely constructed portrait of saxophonist, composer, bandleader, and jazz innovator Ornette Coleman. Clarke began the project in the 1960s, when Coleman was performing in Europe with his 11-year-old son, Denardo (on drums), and that footage is bookended by a 1983 tribute concert in his hometown of Fort Worth, TX, where the local orchestra plays his “Skies of America” symphony, and Coleman performs with his Prime Time band. Clarke also includes fictionalized sequences depicting Coleman's impoverished childhood (with Demon Marshall and Eugene Tatum portraying Coleman). The result—Clarke's last work—is not a traditional documentary, offering little insight into Coleman's music or his inspirations. Instead, Clarke wanted to find a visual equivalent to her subject's improvisational style, and she uses video techniques to mix images together with rapid cutting to jump from past to present and from one idea to another. Along the way, Coleman discusses his interest in Buckminster Fuller and social justice—painting a picture of an eclectic mind and a dedicated artist—but many music-related questions are left unexplored. Presented on DVD and Blu-ray, extras include video and radio interviews with Clarke, an interview with Denardo Coleman, and an example of Clarke's video work. Likely to be much appreciated by jazz aficionados, this is recommended, overall. (S. Axmaker)
Ornette: Made in America
Milestone/Oscilloscope, 77 min., not rated, DVD: $29.95, Blu-ray: $39.95 Volume 30, Issue 1
Ornette: Made in America
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