For someone who usually knocks out a film a year, Michael Winterbottom’s been rather quiet of late. He’s actually continued on his usual rate of productivity, but the last few films from the brilliant but somewhat patchy British filmmaker have made rather small drops in the ocean — few saw his Amanda Knox-inspired “The Face Of An Angel,” and fewer still his Russell Brand-fronted documentary “The Emperor’s New Clothes.”
But the good news is that Winterbottom’s back, and he’s returning to the music world that inspired some of his best work, with a new movie set to debut next month. The BFI London Film Festival have announced that they’ve added “On The Road,” a new film from Winterbottom, to their line-up.
Despite the title, there’s no Kerouac involved here — instead, the film sees Winterbottom follow the excellent rising British band Wolf Alice on the road on their tour earlier this year. Apparently following a band’s life on the road from the eyes of a new tour member (suggesting there may be some docudrama element), it’s apparently something that Winterbottom has been wanting to do for a while.
“The starting point for the film was a long time ago in a bar in New York when we met up with a band called Ash,” Winterbottom says in a press release. “They told us all about their life on the road — an endless string of festivals and gigs. It sounded romantic and terrible at the same time. I was curious to try and make a film about that sort of life.”
Normally music docs focus on groups far bigger than Wolf Alice, but they’re a terrific band, and if this is Winterbottom’s sort of non-fiction “Almost Famous,” we’re on board. The film will bow at the festival on October 9th, and we’ll be there to check it out and give our verdict.