Quartile rating: 7.5/10 · 1 rating
As the front man of the Clash from 1977 onwards, Joe Strummer changed people's lives forever. Four years after his death, his influence reaches out around the world, more strongly now than ever before. In "The Future Is Unwritten", from British film director Julien Temple, Joe Strummer is revealed not just as a legend or musician, but as a true communicator of our times. Drawing on both a shared punk history and the close personal friendship which developed over the last years of Joe's life, Julien Temple's film is a celebration of Joe Strummer - before, during and after the Clash.
Julien Temple's documentary on Joe Strummer is a genuinely distinctive piece of work — its campfire-gathering structure, mixing archival footage with animated sequences and personal testimony, gives it a singular, shaggy warmth that feels true to Strummer's own spirit. The Novelty earns a 4 for that unmistakable voice and form. Cinematography is above average for a documentary, blending archival material and stylized recreations with care. The narrative (Plot) is coherent and emotionally engaging without being especially revealing structurally. The 'acting' dimension, read here as the quality of testimony and on-screen presence, is solid — a parade of credible voices — but uneven. The ending is resonant and appropriately elegiac without being exceptional.