Sound Unseen 11: Do It Again

Screening as part of Sound Unseen 11 - Sat., Oct. 9, @ 3:00 PM @ the Trylon

Often you hear about middle-aged guys and their garage bands trying to make it big after years of trying, or middle-aged former rock stars trying to keep it big after years of succeeding. Or, as seen in last year's excellent Anvil! The Story of Anvil, middle-aged rock stars trying to make it big after years of hopeless failure.

Here's a new one, then: a middle-aged fan trying to bring back some old rock stars fifteen years after they broke up. The band is none other than The Kinks, while the fan is Geoff Edgers, an arts and entetainment writer for the Boston Globe who considers the band to be the greatest of all time (incidentally, he does a fantastic job outlining their history and their impact on the music world). Although the storyline and characters of Do It Again (cleverly named after one of the band's many hits) are a little different than the other examples, the journey is comprised of the same hope, determination, dejection, relief, joy, confusion, and musical passion. In short, Do It Again shows that while the life of a rock star may be taxing, it ain't much easier to be a fan of a band that no longer exists.

Frustrated by contemporary music and the number of classic rock bands that have reunited in recently years, Edgers set out to somehow patch up the internal chaos that led to the breakup of The Kinks. He has no connections, no money, and really no clue where to start. Well, actually, he does have the pedigree of writing for the Boston Globe, but that's not necessarily an advantage when you are presenting yourself as a filmmaker instead of a reporter. Nonetheless, Edgers does eventually get access to the "right" people, including Sting and other major British rockers, but for as much as they love the idea of what he is doing (to a person they all seem to say, "I'd love to see The Kinks together in concert again"), none of them see to really believe that he can do it.

But then, his success doesn't necessarily need to be defined by the outcome of his mission...right? That isn't to give away anything about the conclusion of this charming documentary, but only to say that when you are sacrificing for something you love - and Edgers sacrifices plenty of time and money in his quest - the fulfillment can come from the journey as much as the destination.