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Movies => Good Movies => Topic started by: Trevor on September 12, 2012, 03:21:00 AM



Title: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on September 12, 2012, 03:21:00 AM
I saw this film last night and was knocked out by it to say the very least. It involves a mysterious artist named Sixto Rodriguez whose two albums Cold Fact and Coming From Reality went nowhere in the early 1970's and Rodriguez disappeared, never to be heard of again. There were rumors that he had killed himself onstage amongst others, but his music sold thousands of copies even in apartheid ruled South Africa where the censors were apparently too stupid to understand the lyrics of songs such as I Wonder and Sugarman.

Two people, Stephen Segerman and Craig Bartholomew made it their mission to track down the elusive and reportedly deceased singer: they succeeded and this film is not so much their story: more like the story of a supposedly failed musician who had become a legend in a nation crying for release from all the censorship and sturm und drang of apartheid ruled South Africa.

www.sugarman.org (http://www.sugarman.org)  :thumbup:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on September 12, 2012, 04:11:52 AM
I should just add that Camilla Skagerstrom's cinematography is worthy of a major award.  :cheers:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Pacman000 on October 08, 2012, 10:16:57 AM
The news had a feature on this last night.  It's actually an amazing story.


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: dean on October 08, 2012, 08:56:49 PM
I have my minor issues with the style of the documentary and some of the interviews but most of it was just wanting more information than they gave about Rodriguez and the apartheid musoc scene in general. Overall though it's a pretty good doco that is made better by a fascinating story.

All the better if you love the music.


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Rev. Powell on October 08, 2012, 09:01:11 PM
Originally I thought this topic title was "searching for Saucerman" and I was going to say "he's right here (http://www.badmovies.org/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=2106)."

I saw the trailer for this but I don't think it played here; if it did it came and went in a week. I may get a chance to see it on DVD.


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on October 09, 2012, 01:28:39 AM
The news had a feature on this last night.  It's actually an amazing story.

It is an amazing story: also quite sad in many ways too.


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on October 09, 2012, 01:30:52 AM
I have my minor issues with the style of the documentary and some of the interviews but most of it was just wanting more information than they gave about Rodriguez and the apartheid musoc scene in general. Overall though it's a pretty good doco that is made better by a fascinating story.

All the better if you love the music.

My only hassle with the film is that they made much too much of the music supposedly undermining apartheid and becoming 'revolutionary songs': I call BS on all of that. The simple fact (a cold fact?  :wink:) is that the music spoke to a generation and set them free in their minds at least.


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on October 09, 2012, 01:33:39 AM
Originally I thought this topic title was "searching for Saucerman" and I was going to say "he's right here ([url]http://www.badmovies.org/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=2106[/url])."


 :bouncegiggle: :bouncegiggle:

Quote
I saw the trailer for this but I don't think it played here; if it did it came and went in a week. I may get a chance to see it on DVD.


If you can see it, please do.  :teddyr:



Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: alandhopewell on October 11, 2012, 01:06:49 PM
     Saw the "60 Minutes" report on it, YouTubed his music the next day; I can se how his songs spoke to the heartts of a generation, but not how he was overlooked here.


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on November 29, 2012, 07:45:04 AM
    Saw the "60 Minutes" report on it, YouTubed his music the next day; I can se how his songs spoke to the heartts of a generation, but not how he was overlooked here.

He sang of 'jumpers, coke and sweet mary-jane': Dad had to help me right when I thought he was singing about jerseys, coca-cola and his girlfriend.  :wink:

His producer comes across as a class one a-hole, saying that the album Cold Fact sold about six copies in the USA. When he is told of the huge sales in SA, he says "WTF does South Africa have to do with this? How long they been free?" Idiot.  :tongueout:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on December 04, 2012, 02:04:24 AM
I just read on Indywire that this production has been shortlisted for a Best Documentary Feature Oscar.  :cheers:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on February 19, 2013, 06:20:34 AM
One of my colleagues appears in this film (she's the archivist that shows the director what the powers-that-be ordered done to "undesirable" music back in the day: i.e. scratching the tracks to make them unplayable) and she told me that she is very, very proud of the film and what it has achieved.

So she should be.  :smile:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on February 25, 2013, 01:09:43 AM
 :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: :cheers:

IT WON! IT WON! YES!!!!!!  :cheers: :cheers: :cheers:

Maybe I should tell you special peeps how I really feel.....  :wink:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Archivist on March 30, 2013, 08:06:35 PM
I saw this amazing film last night.  It's still playing in independent cinemas in Australia, and right after I was on Google to find out more about him.  The trailer had come through my YouTube feed but I never thought it would get a theatrical release here.  To say that I was awed and inspired would be understating things.  It's a really remarkable story and the directorial and cinematic style is super.  Very inspiring as well.

I'm kind of pi$$ed that I only just found out about this, because Rodriguez is touring Australia right now, but he plays his last gig tomorrow night in another state!   :hatred:  If I had seen this earlier I would have bought tickets to see him.  The title track, Sugar Man, has such a good melody, and his voice is full of emotion.

It was quite disgusting to see how defensive Clarence Avant was when the question of sales and money was raised.  If Rodriguez sold about 500,000 albums in South Africa, and they were sending the royalties back to Sussex Records, Rodriguez obviously never saw a cent of it.  A bit of Googling shows that Sussex Records was closed and sold by the IRS off due to unpaid taxes, which suggests further dodginess.

Trevor, it sounds like you grew up in the time and environment that Rodriguez was popular.  What was it like then?  Was the movie an accurate depiction of the social climate of the time?  Big props for you being an old work colleague of the archivist in the movie, too!


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: dean on March 31, 2013, 12:59:54 AM
A friend went and saw his concert in Melbourne last week and said he had to be led onto stage, was quite often out of time with the music and had to practice each song briefly before they played, so it was an underwhelming concert.  Though to be fair he is getting quite old...

My dad was being all 'cool' and brought out the old Rodriguez records he bought in the 70s.  I guess he wants to be in with the hipsters now and say 'I liked him before it was cool'.   :thumbup:

[Something I'll have to steal off him at some point]


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Archivist on April 01, 2013, 06:32:18 PM
A friend went and saw his concert in Melbourne last week and said he had to be led onto stage, was quite often out of time with the music and had to practice each song briefly before they played, so it was an underwhelming concert.  Though to be fair he is getting quite old...

That's pretty sad.  From the looks of it, he's had a very hard life, and most likely visited the Sugar Man in his past.  He'd be 70 something now.  I'd go to his concert just to be able to contribute something to him.

Interestingly, when I asked a range of family members if they remembered him from the late 70's and early 80's, none of them did.  Mind you, I didn't play his music to them, so that might have sparked something.  Nice that your dad has his old records!


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on April 02, 2013, 01:11:38 AM
It was quite disgusting to see how defensive Clarence Avant was when the question of sales and money was raised.  If Rodriguez sold about 500,000 albums in South Africa, and they were sending the royalties back to Sussex Records, Rodriguez obviously never saw a cent of it.  A bit of Googling shows that Sussex Records was closed and sold by the IRS off due to unpaid taxes, which suggests further dodginess.

That idiot ruined the film a little for me: it is so obvious that he pocketed the money. When I saw it in the cinema, some of the people in the audience started grumbling and talking back to the screen when he began venting about South Africa. :hatred:

Quote
Trevor, it sounds like you grew up in the time and environment that Rodriguez was popular.  What was it like then?  Was the movie an accurate depiction of the social climate of the time?  Big props for you being an old work colleague of the archivist in the movie, too!

I was born and raised in what was then Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) but my Mom's family was and still is here in South Africa so we came down here fairly often and I first heard the album Cold Fact when I was about eight: that would have been about 1975. My dad had to explain the lyrics of Sugarman to me, telling me that Rodriguez wasn't singing about jerseys, Coca-Cola and his girlfriend.  :wink:

As regards the depiction of the social climate, there the film falls flat on its' backside. The inference is made that these songs defeated apartheid, which is total BS. Censorship was rampant in South Africa at the time, television was banned, films, newspapers, magazines and books were censored or banned and Lord help you if you were caught with an adult magazine! What these songs did do was to give people a release from all the censorship nonsense of the day and allow them to be free in their own minds at least.  :thumbup:

The lady in the film that shows the director the censored album is a longtime colleague of mine.  :smile:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on April 02, 2013, 01:13:18 AM
A friend went and saw his concert in Melbourne last week and said he had to be led onto stage, was quite often out of time with the music and had to practice each song briefly before they played, so it was an underwhelming concert.  Though to be fair he is getting quite old...

I've read that Mr Rodriguez has health problems, among which is glaucoma.  :bluesad:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: dean on April 02, 2013, 02:34:53 AM
It was quite disgusting to see how defensive Clarence Avant was when the question of sales and money was raised.  If Rodriguez sold about 500,000 albums in South Africa, and they were sending the royalties back to Sussex Records, Rodriguez obviously never saw a cent of it.  A bit of Googling shows that Sussex Records was closed and sold by the IRS off due to unpaid taxes, which suggests further dodginess.

That idiot ruined the film a little for me: it is so obvious that he pocketed the money. When I saw it in the cinema, some of the people in the audience started grumbling and talking back to the screen when he began venting about South Africa.  :hatred:

Quote
Trevor, it sounds like you grew up in the time and environment that Rodriguez was popular.  What was it like then?  Was the movie an accurate depiction of the social climate of the time?  Big props for you being an old work colleague of the archivist in the movie, too!

I was born and raised in what was then Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) but my Mom's family was and still is here in South Africa so we came down here fairly often and I first heard the album Cold Fact when I was about eight: that would have been about 1975. My dad had to explain the lyrics of Sugarman to me, telling me that Rodriguez wasn't singing about jerseys, Coca-Cola and his girlfriend.  :wink:

As regards the depiction of the social climate, there the film falls flat on its' backside. The inference is made that these songs defeated apartheid, which is total BS. Censorship was rampant in South Africa at the time, television was banned, films, newspapers, magazines and books were censored or banned and Lord help you if you were caught with an adult magazine! What these songs did do was to give people a release from all the censorship nonsense of the day and allow them to be free in their own minds at least.  :thumbup:

The lady in the film that shows the director the censored album is a longtime colleague of mine.  :smile:


Whilst they did make a bit too much mention of it for my liking [and I'm possibly remembering it wrong] but I don't seem to remember them making a huge song and dance over his music 'defeating apartheid' but more that it really influenced the musicians of the day in showing that they could sing about political topics that skirted around the censor boards, and of course South Africa being South Africa, apartheid was a pretty big one to sing about. 

Also interesting that you mention glaucoma, that would no doubt explain the need to practice a few chords before hand.  Sad to hear...


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on April 02, 2013, 03:18:43 AM
Whilst they did make a bit too much mention of it for my liking [and I'm possibly remembering it wrong] but I don't seem to remember them making a huge song and dance over his music 'defeating apartheid' but more that it really influenced the musicians of the day in showing that they could sing about political topics that skirted around the censor boards, and of course South Africa being South Africa, apartheid was a pretty big one to sing about. 

In those days, if you wanted to present a message movie or song, you had to sugarcoat it, as in the case of the film KATRINA which condemned apartheid laws in the form of a love story. Those that instituted those same laws ended up applauding the movie instead of banning the thing.  :teddyr: :teddyr:

Quote
Also interesting that you mention glaucoma, that would no doubt explain the need to practice a few chords before hand.  Sad to hear...

At least Mr R knows that his music is timeless and that it has touched and continues to touch many lives, as it did mine.  :cheers:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: BumbleGut on May 02, 2013, 09:23:01 PM
I heard this movie was awesome.  What is the name of the musician again?  What are his most famous songs?  Thanks guys.


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on May 03, 2013, 03:24:28 AM
I heard this movie was awesome.  What is the name of the musician again?  What are his most famous songs?  Thanks guys.


Please see the film if you can.

His name is Sixto Diaz Rodriguez and he's from Detroit. Almost all of his songs are famous, such as Sugarman, and I Wonder. A true child of the 60s and a great guy: very humble too.  :thumbup:

More info at www.sugarman.org (http://www.sugarman.org).


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: messedup on January 23, 2014, 05:57:41 AM
Watched it a couple of days ago. Really interesting stuff. Made me listen to his music since then.
Anyone ever find out where the money his CDs made in South Africa went?


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on January 23, 2014, 06:26:59 AM
Watched it a couple of days ago. Really interesting stuff. Made me listen to his music since then.
Anyone ever find out where the money his CDs made in South Africa went?


The research done by the filmmakers shows the SA record companies back in the 1970s sent the money to Sussex Records (and they could prove it) and after that, the trail goes cold. I think the royalties wound up in someone's back pocket.


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Archivist on January 24, 2014, 09:02:24 PM
Given how defensive Clarence Avant was when asked about the money, it wouldn't be hard to make a guess as to whose back pocket it inhabited.

I still love this movie.  Bought the DVD and CD as soon as they became available in Australia.


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on July 01, 2014, 06:25:58 AM
I screened this for Mom a few months back and she said that while she was proud of the small (very) part I had in it, she didn't care for the film as "people were talking all the time and no one was acting".

It was then that I realized Mom had never seen a documentary before....  :teddyr: :teddyr:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Archivist on July 06, 2014, 01:57:21 AM
I screened this for Mom a few months back and she said that while she was proud of the small (very) part I had in it, she didn't care for the film as "people were talking all the time and no one was acting".

It was then that I realized Mom had never seen a documentary before....  :teddyr: :teddyr:

Wow.  It's very surprising that someone has never seen a doco!  Very surprising!  She's obviously got a lot of catching up to do, now!  I trust you will take her education seriously!   :teddyr:


Title: Re: Searching For Sugarman (2012)
Post by: Trevor on July 07, 2014, 05:25:42 AM
Wow.  It's very surprising that someone has never seen a doco!  Very surprising!  She's obviously got a lot of catching up to do, now!  I trust you will take her education seriously!   :teddyr:

I shall tell her you said so.  :wink: :wink:

My parents are actually the people that gave me an education in films: they took me to see my first movie when I was seven. That was forty years ago.  :teddyr: