INTIMATE. EXPLICIT. UNINHIBITED.Ā
Marlon Brando frequently made sound recordings throughout his life, private tapes of meetings, interviews, therapy sessions ā and during hypnosis. For the first time, the public is treated to them in this documentary that takes us through the movie starās life. The recordings offer unpolished reactions, thoughts and outbursts, a commentary on events ranging from Brandoās negative relationship with his parents and rise as a sex symbol, to the art of acting, what it was about Tahiti that attracted him so much, and the tragedies that marked his last years. The sound quality of the recordings arenāt always top-notch, but the material (which lacks a narrator) is very well illustrated by director and editor Stevan Riley, with clips from movies and fascinating archive footage.Ā
2015-U.S. 103 min. Color-B/W. Produced byĀ John Battsek, George Chignell, R.J. Cutler. Written, directed and edited byĀ Stevan Riley.
Last word: “Editing was fairly lengthy. It was about nine months. I was the editor, and I spent the first few months working with an assistant editor, just getting everything in. When all the material was transcribed over the course of a year, some of it came from an archive. I wasnāt sure it would be possible to tell the story all in Brandoās own words, but it did become possible as more and more tapes came out, and then they would get transcribed. They were in folders that came off the floor and then I would go through with a highlighter. I knew I wanted it to be a psychoanalysis of Brando and an investigation of the tragedy in his household. I wanted to see how that would unfold by the end of the film. I wanted a Freudian tale of the boy, the adult and the old man.” (Riley, Filmmaker Magazine)