When You're Strange | |
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Directed by | Tom DiCillo |
Written by | Tom DiCillo |
Produced by |
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Narrated by | Johnny Depp |
Cinematography | Paul Ferrara |
Edited by |
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Music by | The Doors |
Distributed by | Rhino Entertainment |
Release dates |
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Running time | 86 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Box office | $1.2–$2.8 million [1] [2] |
When You're Strange is a 2009 music documentary film about the American rock band the Doors. It was written and directed by Tom DiCillo and narrated by Johnny Depp. The film covers the band's formation in 1965, its development over the next two years, the release of its debut album and subsequent albums, and vocalist Jim Morrison's extensive use of alcohol and drugs, which led to his death in Paris in July 1971. The film features archival footage of rehearsals, TV broadcasts and concert performances, private cine-film and the background to Morrison's arrest at a 1969 Miami concert and later trial. [3] It also includes the first public release of material from Morrison's 1969 featurette HWY: An American Pastoral . [4]
The Doors' keyboardist Ray Manzarek, who was not pleased with the 1991 biopic The Doors , stated prior to the film's release that "This will be the true story of the Doors ... the anti-Oliver Stone." [4] [5]
When the film entered production, the surviving members of the band decided not to be too involved in the project to try to obtain the right neutral balance that an outsider would try to achieve. [6]
The documentary was first screened at the Sundance Film Festival on January 17, 2009. [7] It received somewhat favorable reviews from that showing, but the narration (by director DiCillo) was singled out by most viewers as very seriously flawed for its monotonous delivery. Due to the rash of complaints about the narration, Johnny Depp was hired to redub it. A few months later, DiCillo pronounced the film "just about locked" and announced that there would be a showing of the new "redux" version. It debuted at the Los Angeles Film Festival on Sunday, June 21, 2009.
The completed film was also screened at the London Film Festival on October 16–18, 2009. The film was released in theaters on April 9, 2010, [8] with a soundtrack release on April 6, 2010. It was released in Canada on April 15, 2010. PBS broadcast this film as part of its series American Masters on May 12, 2010. [9] The film was released on DVD on June 29, 2010. [10] [11]
A film soundtrack entitled When You're Strange: Music from the Motion Picture featuring 14 Doors' songs and Morrison's poetry read by Johnny Depp was released to coincide with the film's release. [12]
On Rotten Tomatoes, When You're Strange holds a 60% approval rating with an average rating of 5.7/10 based on 70 critic reviews. The consensus notes: "It's far from a critical assessment of the band's music or its legacy, but When You're Strange gives fans a beautifully filmed, lovingly assembled tribute to the Doors." [13] Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 55 out of 100 based on 18 critic reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [14] In France, distributed by MK2, the film was released under its original title and received an excellent reception. [15]
Doors guitarist Robby Krieger felt "really happy" about how the film turned out, crediting in particular the editing work. Krieger believed that the film put together a more accurate portrayal of Morrison than The Doors did: "I think when you see the Oliver Stone movie – I'm amazed how good Val Kilmer did – but, you know, the problem with that movie is that the script was kind of stupid. It doesn't really capture how Jim was at all. This gives you a much better insight into how his mind worked, I think." [6] Drummer John Densmore also reported that he liked the film very much. [16]
The film was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Nonfiction Series following its airing on American Masters on PBS. [17]
In December 2010, the film was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Long Form Video and subsequently won the award in February 2011. [18]
The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, comprising vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most influential and controversial rock acts of the 1960s, primarily due to Morrison's lyrics and voice, along with his erratic stage persona and legal issues. The group is widely regarded as an important figure of the era's counterculture.
Strange Days is the second studio album by the American rock band the Doors, released on September 25, 1967 by Elektra Records, arriving eight months after their self-titled debut album. After the latter's successful release, the band started experimenting with both new and old material in early 1967 for their second record. Upon release, Strange Days reached number three on the US Billboard 200, and eventually earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). It contains two Top 30 hit singles, "People Are Strange" and "Love Me Two Times".
Robert Alan Krieger is an American guitarist and founding member of the rock band the Doors. Krieger wrote or co-wrote many of the Doors' songs, including the hits "Light My Fire", "Love Me Two Times", "Touch Me", and "Love Her Madly". When the Doors disbanded shortly after the death of lead singer Jim Morrison, Krieger continued to perform and record with other musicians including former Doors bandmates John Densmore and Ray Manzarek. In the 2023 edition of Rolling Stone's 250 greatest guitarists of all time, he was positioned at number 248.
John Paul Densmore is an American musician. He is best known as the drummer of the rock band the Doors and as such is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He appeared on every recording made by the band, with drumming inspired by jazz and world music as much as by rock and roll. The many honors he shares with the other Doors include a Grammy Award for lifetime achievement and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Raymond Daniel Manzarek Jr. was an American keyboardist. He is best known as a member of the rock band The Doors, co-founding the group in 1965 with fellow UCLA Film School graduate Jim Morrison. Manzarek is credited for his innovative playing and abilities on organ-style keyboard instruments.
The Doors is a 1991 American biographical film directed by Oliver Stone and written by Stone and Randall Jahnson. It is based on the history of American rock band the Doors and their influence on music and counterculture. The film stars Val Kilmer as singer Jim Morrison, Meg Ryan as Morrison's girlfriend Pamela Courson, Kyle MacLachlan as keyboardist Ray Manzarek, Frank Whaley as lead guitarist Robby Krieger, Kevin Dillon as drummer John Densmore, Billy Idol as Cat, and Kathleen Quinlan as journalist Patricia Kennealy.
"The End" is an epic song by the American rock band the Doors. Lead singer Jim Morrison initially wrote the lyrics about his break up with an ex-girlfriend, Mary Werbelow, but it evolved through months of performances at the Whisky a Go Go into a much longer song. The Doors recorded a nearly 12-minute version for their self-titled debut album, which was released on January 4, 1967 and in which it was its closing track.
"Love Me Two Times" is a song by the American rock band the Doors. First appearing on their second studio album Strange Days, it was later edited to a 2:37 length and released as the second single from that album. The single reached number 25 on the charts in the United States.
Thomas A. DiCillo is an American film director, screenwriter, cinematographer, and musician.
"When the Music's Over" is an epic song by the American rock band the Doors, which appears on their second album Strange Days, released in 1967. It is among the band's longer pieces, lasting 11 minutes.
"People Are Strange" is a song by the American rock band the Doors. It appears on the band's second studio album, Strange Days, released in September 1967. The song was written by the Doors' vocalist Jim Morrison and guitarist Robby Krieger, although all of the band are credited on the sleeve notes.
The Complete Studio Recordings is a seven compact disc box set by American rock group the Doors, released by Elektra on November 9, 1999. It contains six of the original nine Doors albums, digitally remastered with 24 bit audio. The album includes previously unreleased tracks that had surfaced on The Doors: Box Set, on disc seven. The albums are placed in chronological order.
James Douglas Morrison was an American singer, songwriter and poet who was the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band the Doors. Due to his energetic persona, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, erratic and unpredictable performances, along with the dramatic circumstances surrounding his life and early death, Morrison is regarded by music critics and fans as one of the most influential frontmen in rock history. Since his death, his fame has endured as one of popular culture's top rebellious and oft-displayed icons, representing the generation gap and youth counterculture.
The Doors Collection is a music video compilation by the American rock band the Doors, released on Laserdisc and DVD in 1995 and 1999, respectively. It compiles three films previously released on VHS by MCA/Universal Home Video: Dance on Fire (1985), Live at the Hollywood Bowl (1987) and The Soft Parade – A Retrospective (1991).
When You're Strange: Music from the Motion Picture is the studio album and the soundtrack to the 2010 documentary film, narrated by Johnny Depp, about the Doors and their music. The soundtrack features 14 songs from The Doors’ six studio albums, with studio versions mixed with live versions, including performances from The Ed Sullivan Show, Television-Byen in Gladsaxe, Felt Forum in New York and Isle of Wight Festival 1970.
Manzarek–Krieger was an American rock band formed by two former members of the Doors, Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger, in 2002. They were also known as "The Doors of the 21st Century", "D21C", and "Riders on the Storm" after the Doors song of the same name. They settled on using "Manzarek–Krieger" or "Ray Manzarek and Robby Krieger of The Doors" for legal reasons, after acrimonious debates and court battles between the two musicians and Doors co-founder/ drummer John Densmore. They performed Doors material exclusively until the death of Manzarek in 2013.
Feast of Friends is a 1969 documentary film about the American rock band the Doors. It was directed by Paul Ferrara, Babe Hill and the Doors. Ferrara followed the Doors between April and September 1968, filming excerpts of concert performances, conversations between the band and the band relaxing backstage. Hill recorded the audio using a portable Nagra recorder.
Live at the Isle of Wight Festival 1970 is a live album by the American rock band the Doors, released on February 23, 2018, on Rhino Records. The concert was recorded at the Isle of Wight Festival in England on August 30, 1970, and this was released by Eagle Rock Entertainment. It was the group's final appearance as a foursome outside of the US and also the last full filming of a Doors concert.
R-Evolution is a 2013 music documentary featuring 19 live performances, TV performances and music videos by American rock band the Doors. The compilation features TV performances not previously released as well as original music videos from the 1960s, the 1980s and the 1990s. All archive footage was digitally restored and the sound was remixed and mastered for 5.1 by Bruce Botnick. It was released by Eagle Rock on November 25, 2013.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Wikipedia articles available about The Doors.