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Kurt Cobain: About a Son is an unusual kind of documentary. Edited down from more than 25 hours of late-night phone interviews—which were recorded by music journalist Michael Azerrad between December of 1992 and March of 1993 for his book, Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana—the film takes a close, personal look at the tragic rocker who influenced a whole generation.
In over an hour and a half of recordings, Cobain tells his story in his own words. He talks about his childhood in Aberdeen, Washington, where he passed the time by throwing rocks at police cars. He talks about not fitting in at school and about his relationship with his pot-smoking mom and his absentee dad. He also talks about his friendships, his music, and the pain and illnesses that plagued him for years. He talks candidly about drugs, parenthood, and his relationship with his wife, Courtney Love. He reveals his hopes for the future and his thoughts about death.
As the audio clips roll, the film flashes images of the areas where Kurt grew up and where he lived later in his life—his school, the streets of Aberdeen, his father’s lumber mill and the office where he worked. And in the background, there are audio clips featuring songs by some of Kurt’s musical influences.
Director AJ Schnack didn’t have a lot to work with when he made this movie—just lots and lots of fascinating recordings. I’m guessing he hit the famous Courtney Love Roadblock when he tried to get permission to use actual pictures of Kurt—because, until the last few minutes, you don’t see him at all. For that reason, the images are sometimes hard to understand. Though you can sometimes guess what they are (while Kurt’s talking about his dad’s office, for instance, you can probably safely assume that the office shown is his dad’s). But there isn’t any explanation—and sometimes the images seem somewhat random and irrelevant. You might also be surprised to find that the film doesn’t include any Nirvana songs. Sometimes there’s a lot going on—with images and background music and Kurt’s voice and the things going on in the background (at one point, you can hear baby Francis Bean crying in the background, and, at another, Courtney interrupts the interview to ask Kurt to bring up a bottle when he’s done)—but it all comes together relatively well.
Though he didn’t have a lot to work with, though, Schnack did a pretty good job with what he had. The recordings seem to bring Cobain back to life, if only for a while. They give interesting insight into his life, his philosophy, and his personality. It’s funny, it’s sad, it’s moving, and it’s tragic. The lack of relevant images does detract a bit from the finished product—and it probably would have been just as significant, and perhaps less distracting, had it been released on CD instead of as a film—but if you’re able to let go of some of the more confusing images and enjoy the audio experience, you’ll find it fascinating and insightful. And once you walk out of the theater (or eject the DVD), I guarantee you’ll find yourself reaching for your old Nirvana CDs.
