A Netflix streaming rec: "Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him?)

[elocs]

Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him?)
2006NR 116 minutes

Brilliant, mysterious singer-songwriter Harry Nilsson cut an indefinable path across the 1960s pop-cultural landscape, garnering such fans as John Lennon and Randy Newman. This discerning documentary lays bare the vast extent of Nilsson's influence. Along with rare archival material -- including home movies and audio clips -- anecdotes from Jon Voight, Van Dyke Parks and other scene makers spotlight the highs and lows of a mercurial career.

Cast:
Harry Nilsson, Jon Voight, Ray Cooper, Micky Dolenz, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Yoko Ono, Van Dyke Parks, Ringo Starr, Robin Williams, Brian Wilson
Director:
John Scheinfeld
Genres:
Documentary, Biographical Documentaries, Singer-Songwriters, Classic Rock, Rock & Pop
Format:
DVD and streaming

[tigereye]

1. well, that looks pretty cool!

Me and My Arrow... right?

[Biker13]

7. Yes!!

"The Point"! I love it!

Bless you for remembering!

Biker's Old Lady

[Maine-ah]

14. one of my favorites!

[bluedigger]

2. Jump Into the Fire

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QghwNqlCRE

[elocs]

3. Harry did lots of songs that most people would have heard:

"Everybody's Talkin'" from Midnight Cowboy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AzEY6ZqkuE

"Without You": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERhvqJzmZAY

"Coconut": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tbgv8PkO9eo

"Jump Into the Fire": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QghwNqlCRE

"Spaceman": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3j8LDZreZ7M&feature=fvsr

The famous "You're Breaking my Heart": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02lXLiFsRtE suggested to be sung at his grave site by George Harrison. He was great pals with both John Lennon and Ringo and the Beatles loved his music.

[blogslut]

4. Why, thank you

I just got Netflix back and I had heard about this doc. :hi:

[Crystal Clarity]

5. Thanks for the suggestion

It looks good. I'll have to add it to my queue

[Lindsey]

6. God I LOVE Netflix Streamer! Thanks for the heads up...n/t

[Tabasco_Dave]

8. Your Breaking my Heart, is the best break-up song

I play it for everybody who has a breakup and they buy or download the song and thank me. Even my twenty three year old step daughter loves it.

[dmr]

9. You're tearing it apart, but F*&$ You!

Ooh!--ooh!--
You stepped on my ass
You're breaking my glasses too
You wanna drive my car
Buy a lot of stuff
I've had enough
Of you--ooh!
I'm goin' insane
There's no one to blame
So f*&$ you

I have every LP by Harry. When he died, I cried.
:hi:

[elocs]

10. I mostly got into Nilsson with Nilsson Schmilsson, and Son of Schmilsson.

This documentary was a good tribute to his life and music. I learned more about Harry Nilsson from these couple of hours than I knew before.

[elocs]

11. At the end of the documentary one of his friends tells of a sad George Harrison

at the grave site saying, "You know my favorite Harry song?" To which the friend answered, "It's tough to pick..." And George replies, "Fuck you". "What?" "No, fuck you, let's sing it for Harry".

Then around the grave the six of them sang, "You're breaking my heart, you're tearing it apart, so fuck you!" He said it was such a bittersweet moment, but nobody around the grave site did not have a smile on their face.

[tigereye]

12. that's kinda sweet- like it.

It was so wild when that popular hip-hop singer scored recently with the same Nilsson- penned tune.

[gmoney]

13. Doh! I just purchased this... A Youtube bonus for Nilsson fans here

While I'm sure it's good, it would have been nice to preview on Netflix first... oh well.


Someone uploaded an amazing BBC special featuring the recording of Nilsson's "A Little Touch of Schmillson in the Night" -- his stellar album of old standards with Gordon Jenkins leading a full orchestra. It's the complete special in 5 parts:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9Zsjphc3RI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyfnqEADpSY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lwdePZg9BU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNXXSYjWnO4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWF8wkXvPSM

[elocs]

16. I am sure you must be a Nilsson fan and will enjoy it. A review from Amazon.com:

Review
If you see one rock doc this year, make it HARRY NILSSON... Close to genius, in fact. --Stephen King, Entertainment Weekly

Product Description
Who is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)? is a wildly entertaining, star-studded documentary that tells the story of one of the most talented and versatile singer-songwriters in pop music history and the man The Beatles dubbed their favorite American musician. The Grammy® Award-winners Everybody s Talkin and Without You ... the quirky Coconut ( Put de lime in de coconut... )... the whimsical Me And My Arrow, and the poignant One ( ...is the loneliest number )... these recordings are all the work of Harry Nilsson. The documentary, which Ain t It Cool News said, is everything a great documentary needs to be, reveals his spirited relationship with John Lennon and close bond with Ringo Starr, as well as Harry the legendary bad boy party animal who was at the same time a devoted husband and father. Director John Scheinfeld brings added emotion and intimacy to the story with over 50 Nilsson recordings, rare or never-before-seen film clips, home movies and personal photos. To this are added compelling interviews with top music and movie personalities who knew Harry well. They include Micky Dolenz, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Al Kooper, Randy Newman, Yoko Ono, Van Dyke Parks, The Smothers Brothers, Jimmy Webb, Paul Williams, Robin Williams, Brian Wilson and many others. As film critic Leonard Maltin noted, Who Is Harry Nilsson? is a vivid portrait of a gifted man...what a great reminder of his talent. The DVD also contains 93 minutes of Bonus Material Deleted Scenes, Extended Sequences, an Alternate Ending and more.

So you get a lot more on the dvd than was on Netflix streaming. In fact, I think I'll put the dvd in my queue just to watch the extras.

[Dappleganger]

15. Looks good!

Last night we watched "Ip Man" streaming from netflix, and of course I can't wait for the 2nd installment to be released on dvd.

[johnnie]

17. Streamed it from Netflix last week

Loved it! That's the 2006 version and they have a new version that just came out last month. It has a lot of extras on the DVD so I bought it.