Edgar Wright’s funny, breezy, informative documentary on the unclassifiable band Sparks is one of this year’s real treats. It’s a love letter to band’s longevity, creativity, and yes, I would say, genius. Refusing to be pigeonholed, brothers Ron and Russell Mael thumbed their noses at convention, refusing to play by the industry’s rules, and changed their musical direction every couple of albums. Together since the ‘70s, they continue to put out music at an incredible rate, making them one of the most durable acts of all time.
I’m sure many of you probably have never heard of Sparks before. However, I guarantee you’ve probably heard one of their songs. In fact, you probably have heard two of their songs and never knew it was the same band because of their chameleon-like sound.
Their stage dynamic is pretty irresistible. Ron, stone-faced and sporting a Hitler mustache plays the keyboards while pretty boy Russell belts out operatic melodies. That same dynamic is front and center during the interview segments, as the brothers are often hilarious together.
The film follows their formation and early success under the guidance of Todd Rundgren. Time and again, they prove to be ahead of their time, which usually doesn’t help boost record sales. I mean it’s hard to really maintain sales when you change your sound every couple of albums. It’s even harder when you are doing electronic and New Wave records before those genres really had a name yet.
Their knack for being ahead of their time ensured that they didn’t get much continued mainstream success in America, but were a big hit overseas. They were almost always on tour, one brief hiatus notwithstanding, and/or recording, often collaborating with everyone from Giorgio Moroder to Jane Wiedlin to Franz Ferdinand. Their tendency to experiment with different musical genres is ultimately put to the test when they attempt to play EVERY SINGLE SONG THEY EVER RECORDED IN CONCERT over a period of three weeks. Who does that? That’s insane. That’s Sparks.
The Sparks Brothers is one of Edgar Wright’s best. Known mostly for his comedies, he proves to have a great documentarian’s eye. The film is maybe a little on the long side, but then again, there’s a lot to cover. I guess I can forgive Wright for neglecting the band’s contribution of the title tune to the Get Crazy soundtrack and omitting the fact they provided the score for the Jean-Claude Van Damme flick, Knock Off. At least their appearance in the cheesy ‘70s disaster flick Rollercoaster is discussed!
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