Blog 15: A comparison of Leonard Cohen films
The first movie about Leonard Cohen was Marianne & Leonard: Words of Love by Nick Broomfield. It was focused on Marianne and her relationship with Leonard. There was no real focus on the other women in his life and he was not glorified or vilified either. It seemed as if they tried to make him appear more human by showing his victories as well as his mistakes. It was a heartwarming story considering how Marianne ended up happy even without him and how even though they had a very complicated relationship, they still had love for one another in the end. They finally recognized the role of his muse Marianne and gave her the credit she deserved while depicting her as a somewhat strong and independent woman, even though they did not go into details about her as a person.
On the other hand, the movie Ladies and Gentlemen... Mr. Leonard Cohen by Don Owen and Donald Brittain was solely focused on Leonard Cohen. Marianne was not particularly mentioned if at all. It was filmed all in black and white and in a way that reminds me of the early 90s. The target audience seems to be people who were already fans of him and just want to immerse themselves even more without being challenged on their idealized perspective. Leonard is being glorified, they only put forward his accomplishment and virtue. They talk about him being a vegetarian and how his interest in people was genuine and how funny he was amongst other things.
It almost feels as if both movies are not talking about the same man. In Ladies and Gentlemen... Mr. Leonard Cohen, he does not seem to have any real problem and seems to always be perfect without hurting the people surrounding him. The other movie talks about an artist looking for something he could not quite reach and causing pain to the people around him, especially Marianne. This one seemed too much choreographed and idealized, especially with the last scene where Cohen explains that it was just a performance.


















