by Daniel V. Garcia
Daily Lobo
As I prepared to write this column, I took Regina Spektor's jazz roots as a cue to revisit what has been described as the greatest jazz film of all time: "'Round Midnight."
Made in 1986, "'Round Midnight" starred real-life saxophonist Dexter Gordon as Dale Turner and was based on the lives of Bud Powell and Lester Young.
In the story, Turner is a fading jazz giant whose once-keen edge has been dulled by years of substance abuse. He moves from New York to Paris in 1959 as a last ditch effort to redeem himself with a regular gig at the historic Blue Note Club. There, he is discovered by Francis, a young designer whose entire raison d'àtre comes from Turner's early works. Francis appears to be one of the last remaining people who still sees the man as something great. He quickly becomes dedicated to helping Turner regain his lapsed creativity.
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The film is as impressionistic and pastel as a Monet landscape, a credit to director Bertrand Tavernier's love of jazz. Many jazz films which came before this one featured musicians in a concert setting with the director calling all of the shots. In this film, Tavernier relied on input from the actors - authentic jazz musicians - to shape it into something of greater authenticity. The result is an atmosphere that so captures the essence of jazz such that it only hints of fiction.
The subtle ballads throughout the film were played live and were filmed in their entirety. Unlike most movies about musicians, the music here plays a central role in the development of the plot. As such, it is a whole role unto itself - complete with character development. It transforms from sad ballads into danceable bebop as Turner gains stability and friendship.
Gordon's acting is nothing short of amazing. His lackadaisical lines drip from his husky baritone like an improvised saxophone melody and are punctuated by the smooth gestures of his huge, yet fragile hands. At 6 feet 5 inches, his imposing stature contrasts with the gentle melancholy of a haunted artist. In fact, Gordon received an Oscar nomination for this role, which is all the more astonishing when one considers that he was not a professional actor.
This film, perhaps more than any other I have seen, goes beyond its fictitious nature and becomes a window into jazz history. It's as if it begins with actors who slowly become the characters that they are playing and who, by film's end, are elevated to the mythic status of tortured, lonely and beautiful musicians.
Gordon is now dead, but he will always be remembered in the minds of most viewers as Dale Turner, the fictional representative of artists who transformed their pain into a beauty that transcends time and place.
