The Sparks Brothers

"+ The most endearing thing that comes through in this work is how much of a labor of love it is. The director Edgar Wright seems like one of those people whose life's blueprint is heavily leaden with obscure pop culture knowledge, and this band duo seems to be the greatest hidden gem of that knowledge that he was dying to share with the world. The two brothers come across as down-to-earth (and strange) people who create some of the best, overlooked, and apparently influential music ever made. Their story is told through interviews with authors, comedians, and other well known musicians, in monochrome cinematography, stop-motion segments, and other animation styles along with old footage of their decades-long prolific career. One theme in music documentaries that works so well is the underdog story where a band or musician makes great music, is overlooked in their own country and makes a name for themselves in a foreign country. This movie shares that theme with another awesome documentary, Searching For Sugar Man, but whereas that movie was about a cultural movement started by a mysterious figure, this is about a band who many other entertainers knew and loved, but not as many of the general population paid as much attention to. It's funny, endearing and strange all at once, and told in such lively style. - For people like myself who have never heard of this band, it can inspire them to check out their music, but the documentary itself can seem a bit too long. Perhaps it's because I don't share Edgar Wright's life long love affair with their music, but I thought it was about 20 minutes too long. However, I can see this not being the case for those who don't mind having too much of a good thing. Maybe this band will grow on me with time, but being unfamiliar with their music, I wasn't passionately asking for that extra time when it came to story. Overall: A funny, endearing, and strange documentary that may be a bit too long for the uninitiated. Still really good."

"Nothing short of superb."

"A must-watch for Sparks fans, but anybody into art, comedy, music and/ or underappreciated gems will get a lot out of it as well. For those who aren't fans, the fact that it goes chronologically, showing off the best songs of every album and a plethora of the music videos makes it really easy for any non-fan to follow along. For fellow fans, this also makes it easy to retrace the steps of their rich legacy, delving into exactly what draws so many of us into their style, as they are true artists."

"Great film, esp. for music fans!"

"If you like Edgar Wright, watch this movie. If you enjoy uncompromising artistic vision, watch this movie. If you want to find yourself immersed in music that was always there that you never knew about, definitely watch this movie. Saw it without any context on a sweltering hot night in a blissfully air conditioned theatre, and the experience was magic. "

"This was the first film I saw back in the theaters after quarantine, and thus marks the end of this list."

"Introduced me to the band and reignited my love for Edgar wright so great all around"