IYD movie review - Hollywood Reporter

[elle]

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/rev...ks-film-377657

8:25 PM EDT 10/9/2012 by John DeFore

In Your Dreams: Stevie Nicks - P 2012

The Bottom Line
Behind-the-scenes document is for big fans only.

Venue
Hamptons International Film Festival, World Cinema: Documentary

Directors
Dave Stewart, Stevie Nicks

Stevie Nicks and producer Dave Stewart co-direct a diary about the album they made together.

THE HAMPTONS, NEW YORK — A diaristic doc whose appeal is limited strictly to megafans, In Your Dreams: Stevie Nicks chronicles the collaboration between Nicks and Eurythmics member Dave Stewart on the 2011 album of the same name. A raucous premiere here (with viewers applauding after every song) suggests Nicks has enough admirers to fill special screenings here and there, but the film is best suited to a CD/DVD Collectors' Edition package.

Nicks and Stewart share directing credit on the film, displaying an enthusiasm for effects -- from filters to fisheye lenses -- that sometimes exacerbates the choppiness of Shane Mclafferty's editing. Their stylistic flourishes fit more smoothly in the music video-like sequences scattered throughout, where 19th-century costumes and the occasional vampire or magician matches the music's mood.

The film opens "somewhere in Southern California," where Nicks has decided to set up mikes in the middle of her sprawling old house and spend the better part of a year piecing a record together with Stewart and some other old friends. Having handed Stewart a book full of writings (she uses the word "poems" pretty loosely), the two collaborate on making songs from them; the film gives each track its own bit of screen time, whether it was inspired by a long-ago post-rehab romance ("For What It's Worth") or is little more than an aural book report about "Wide Sargasso Sea."

This may suit devotees, but more casual fans will wish for a movie that doesn't assume we already know everything there is to know about the singer's career. Only one brief tangent on her childhood makes its way onscreen, and there's almost no talk of her early solo outings or her heyday with Fleetwood Mac. (An enjoyable bit of keyboard noodling on "Dreams" is as close as we get to the glory days.) Old bandmates Mick Fleetwood and Lindsey Buckingham do drop by to record on new songs, though, and we are treated to a funny story about the time Nicks tried to steal a Mike Campbell tune that became Tom Petty's "Runaway Trains."

Though unconvinced viewers may snort when Nicks compares herself to Bob Dylan or treats lyrics scribbled on hotel stationery like relics of great import, we do see things partly explaining her success: Knowing she's not getting what she wants during a track's playback, she proves to have remembered one of Stewart's guitar solos better than he himself does.

Production Company: Weapons of Mass Entertainment
Directors-Executive Producers: Dave Stewart, Stevie Nicks
Producers: Dave Stewart, Paul Boyd
Director of photography: Paul Boyd
Editor: Shane Mclafferty
Sales: John Beug
No rating, 100 minutes

[MacFan92]

Obviously this is for "big fans only". Would a casual fan of any musician really be out buying/ watching documentaries about them? Probably not.

[fringed n fab]

This means nothing to me. I've never listened to critics reviews. Some of my favorite films are ones that were little known or bombed on the big screen but became huge admired classics later. Who listens to crabby reviews on what someone else likes? Be your own judge always.

[Josh2003]

I, for one, am THRILLED that the doc doesn't delve into the early days, the drugs, the break-ups, the rehab...THANK GOD this thing is for "devotees" and not the "casual fan"!

[jkmaletic]

Originally Posted by Josh2003

I, for one, am THRILLED that the doc doesn't delve into the early days, the drugs, the break-ups, the rehab...THANK GOD this thing is for "devotees" and not the "casual fan"!

Exactly! We don't need a history lesson over and over again. And to think people do need it to explain who Stevie is is nonsense.

[Macfanforever]

Yes it was strickly behind the scenes of making IYD cd.I love these kind of shows.Stevie had a blast recording this CD and the docu as I seen monday afternoon.

Yes there is no need for a rehash about her personal life.

[HejiraNYC]

I personally loved the IYD documentary strictly from the perspective of a fan who loves the album and the chance to see/hear all of the outtakes and unseen footage. But does it work as a stand-alone movie? Probably not. The one crucial thing missing here is a storyline or some kind of a central narrative that ties all of these vignettes together into some kind of overarching theme. As a fan, I love the fact that every single track on the album was covered. As a moviegoer, I found it tedious to be quite honest. There are simply some tracks that didn't really have a particularly emotionally compelling backstory (e.g., "Ghosts Are Gone," "Wide Sargasso Sea," "In Your Dreams," etc.) that probably didn't need their own vignettes. Instead, I wish there was more insight into Stevie and Dave's relationship and about the sequence of events that led to this album being made. I also think some historical perspective about her career and her relationship with Lindsey would have made moments like the recording of "Soldiers Angel" more poignant. Perhaps there should have also been footage of the backstage scene at the Wiltern show- particularly her apprehension with playing so many new songs and straddling the line between being an oldies artist vs. a working/evolving artist. There are so many untapped themes relating to the music business, old age and fame that would have enriched this movie far beyond merely being a travelogue of her recording adventures.

[jkmaletic]

Well, given the hours and hours of footage they had to edit down to 101 minutes, it makes sense to concentrate on the making of each song.

Here's hoping for an extended 6 hour fan version on the DVD!
I tweeted Dave to feel free to do that and his reply was a smiley face.

[Macfanforever]

Originally Posted by jkmaletic

Well, given the hours and hours of footage they had to edit down to 101 minutes, it makes sense to concentrate on the making of each song.

Here's hoping for an extended 6 hour fan version on the DVD!
I tweeted Dave to feel free to do that and his reply was a smiley face.

Smiley face.LOL.He just might just post the out takes on the new website.That would be great.

[michelej1]

Originally Posted by HejiraNYC

Instead, I wish there was more insight into Stevie and Dave's relationship .

Oh, no.

Michele

[Bandon]

I agree with what everyone is saying. I don't need a re-hash of the past.... just the making of cd. Didn't any ledgies go the the screening? I'm surprised there hasn't been a fan review. Did I miss something?

[fringed n fab]

What no backstage behind the scenes from shows? I always loved those from her. For me the excitement backstage would be more interesting to see then sitting around in a circle during the recording process at home if that's what this is. Still, I can't judge what I haven't viewed yet but this film is still cool coming from Stevie.

[WildHearted]

Originally Posted by michelej1

Oh, no.

Michele

My sentiments exactly.

[sodascouts]

Yeah, the documentary had PLENTY of Stevie/Dave Mutual Admiration Society moments. We didn't need any more of that!

I would have liked more backstory, too. I didn't want it to be another Behind the Music, but they did have a couple of segments on her childhood and teenage years - why not have brief segments about the seventies, eighties, and nineties as well, just to put this into perspective?