NEIL YOUNG JOURNEYS
Directed by Jonathan Demme
For his third documentary featuring Neil Young, director Jonathan Demme rides shotgun with the Canadian music icon as he drives from Omemee his hometown and the town in north Ontario from Helpless to play a solo gig at Torontos Massey Hall. Initially, this seems like little more than a novel way of uncovering fresh anecdotes to intersperse with footage from a typically impassioned performance. However, the interview segments become increasingly poignant, building to an affecting moment when Young searches for a familiar landmark and laments, Aw, man... Its all gone.
In many respects, Journeys is very much a film about whats already disappeared and whats in the midst of fading away. When we both have silver hair/And a little less time... Young sings on Sign of Love, one of many songs featured here from Le Noise, the 2010 album recorded after the loss of two dear friends. With classics like Ohio and Hey Hey, My My also dealing with death, its a decidedly sombre set list.
Its also a song cycle that Young has a tremendous emotional investment in. Make no mistake, Down by the River isnt being played for the audiences benefit. Young is tackling the track for the umpteenth time because he still has unfinished business with it. As Demmes cameras lock on the singer-songwriters face, you can see him not only rekindling the initial inspiration for the song but also reevaluating what it means to him 40 years on. And while his voice may not lilt as effortlessly as it once did, a lifetime of experience has lent it a haunting resonance. Curtis Woloschuk
