“That video has come closer to what I have seen in my mind than any other video" 

I felt like starting today with this legendary quote from Kurt Cobain. Kurt says this about his Nirvana – Heart Shaped Box music video directed by Anton Corbijn. This week the VPRO aired the for me highly anticipated documentary Anton Corbijin: Inside Out. (Iplayer) (Trailer). Director Klaartje Quirijns gets full access to Corbijn’s life whom has been responsible as a creative director behind the visual output of U2, Depeche Mode, Nick Cave, REM, Metallica and Coldplay for the last 30 years. As well as Directing the beautiful Ian Curtis biopic Control and George Clooney’s The American. Even though it’s great to see what Corbijn really ticks I felt Klaartje’s thesis doc puts Corbijn’s loneliness too much up front as a son of pastor in the Dutch Reformed Church. She pushes too far towards Corbijn’s conflict of the admiration of his fans, personal loneliness and his inherent conflict striving to be that perfect artist. Klaartje basically failed in all aspects of showing the unique artistry of maybe one of the most significant artists of post-modern pop culture. The most fascinating bit in the doc is that at a certain point you realize there are distinct similarities between Corbijn and Swedish film director Ingmar Bergman, who was also the son of a Protestant pastor. Both Corbijn and Bergman have a unique intensity in the way they approach there work. Inside Out is still a one-to-watch for those who are a fan of Corbijn. And while you at it I recommend Josh Whiteman’s 2009 doc. Shadow Play: The Making of Anton Corbijn Photo credit: PunkToad from oakland, us, A Most Wanted Man at Sundance Date, 19 January 2014, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Anton Corbijn, Daniel Brühl, Willem Dafoe, Rachel McAdams, Creative Commons, Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0). Enjoy!