You know that infamous video on YouTube where a very drunk Kiefer Sutherland attacks a Christmas tree? The footage is from a documentary called I Trust You to Kill Me, which just came out on DVD. It's about Kiefer Sutherland's adventures as he plays tour manager to a band on his record label as they tour Europe. I just Netflixed it last week and I recommend watching it. Here's why:The movie was supposed to be about how hard it is to get a good band to become popular, but it ends up being about Kiefer Sutherland. And that's OK. Keifer is an interesting guy. With all the reality shows out there that follow around famous people, this one is delightfully... real. He's a guy who has guilt about his privileged life but also appreciates his celebrity status right now because he knows that things could be (and have been) worse. I think the movie will particularly appeal to 24 fans who just plain want more Kiefer, but it is also appealing to non-fans (like myself) who are curious.
Kiefer hits the road with the band, Rocco DeLuca and the Burden, during Christmas break from shooting season five of 24 (we do get to see him on the set a little bit). Throughout the movie, you learn that Kiefer is a real decent guy who appreciates a drink, a smoke, good music, and decent conversation. He has a reputation for being a bit of a partier and it's well-earned. I did get the impression, however, that the filmmaker held back on showing some of Kiefer's partying and womanizing because he was a little starstruck.
Kiefer's intent when he first embarks upon this European tour is just to travel with the band and help them make sure they get to the right place at the right time. But, when he realizes that there may not be very many people to see the band perform, he pimps himself out to local radio and television stations to talk about 24 and also about the band. His motivations appear pure-- he wants the band to succeed and if his celebrity power will help, so be it. Yes, the funniest scene in the movie is probably the attacking of the Christmas tree, but there are also some good laughs after that (it appears very early in the film).
People looking for a movie about the making of a band will probably be disappointed. While there are some lengthy sequences where the filmmaker lets the band play their songs, the movie really is about Kiefer Sutherland. We do get to learn a tiny bit about the leader of the band, Rocco DeLuca, and see that he is somewhat of a tortured soul/guitar genius.
There's no major life lesson to learn from this documentary and you won't come away with any great knowledge about the world, but it is a nice picture of who Kiefer is beyond the mayhem that is 24.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-29-2007 @ 12:36PM
innamorata said...
The director is Kim Raver's husband, right?
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1-29-2007 @ 12:40PM
Rob said...
Yeah,.. I have this on my ReplayTV when it was originally aired, but I have yet to watch it. After reading your review, I might give it a shot....
... one of these days.
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1-29-2007 @ 1:40PM
Cinesister said...
Have to add a comment here... I'm a fan of 24 and therefore Kiefer Sutherland's work, and somehow (probably through an interview somewhere) I heard about Rocco Deluca and The Burden at the start of 2005. I downloaded the album on iTunes, had a listen, thought it was pretty cool, that was that.
However I went to see the band play live when they came to London in May of last year and they blew me out of the place! Completely amazing, this guy is like Jeff Buckley, in terms of sheer intensity and talent. Since then I've seen them every time they've come back to play in the UK, as I think that kind of raw passion and talent is so rare in live music nowadays.
Kiefer Sutherland and Rocco Deluca are mutually exclusive - they are both awesome at what they do. Rocco needs to be recognised in his own right, and not constantly as 'that guy Kiefer Sutherland went on tour with'. Of course it makes sense with the documentary, but I think the true test will be whether he can get more than just screaming Kiefer nutjob fangirls to go to his shows. I think he's really starting to build an audience though, as every time I've seen them play the venue and the crowd has been bigger. So I think he's coming out of Kiefer's shadow now. But the tone and balance of the documentary certainly don't help matters.
I wish more talented people would go out on a limb to bring other great, deserving artists up into the limelight using their 'star' power. It's a great thing to do for a musician who might have otherwise spent years unfairly stuck in the small clubs of Los Angeles (though I like to believe that talent wins out in the end...naive, I know lol)
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1-29-2007 @ 4:51PM
McGone said...
I watched this when it aired on VH-1 back in November and started downloading the "I Trust You To Kill Me" album off of iTunes halfway through the documentary.
As a huge 24 fan, Keifer was obviously the reason I watched and it was some fascinating insight. But I was very impressed with DeLuca. Can't wiat to see the band live some day, hopefully before they get too big. I have to agree with Cinesister... there's a definite Jeff Buckley vibe to DeLuca.
Having said all that, the video for "Colorful" doesn't do much for the band. In fact, it's kind of embarrassing IMO. They should push the documentary as much as possible. Great stuff.
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