2016 will be an excellent movie year for all jazz lovers. There are two full length movies that will have their premieres soon and both are about great trumpet legends. The first one to hit the theaters is “Born to be Blue”, a not-quite-biopics film about Chet Baker, with Ethan Hawke playing the legendary musician. It was directed by Robert Budreau and is scheduled to be released in the U.S. on March 25th. The film was already shown in the Special Presentations section of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival, with positive reviews from the critics. The story begins with Baker’s life in the 1960s, showing how his heroin addiction has taken its toll, demolishing his personal and professional life. Chet Baker was considered one of the best jazz artists in the 50’s, a reputation he ruined with his heroin abuse. But with the help of a new love (played by Carmen Ejogo), he finds the strength to try and dig himself out of the hole he’s put himself in, and begin the climb back to the top. The trailer promises a lot:
The second movie that is scheduled to come out just few days after “Born to be Blue” is a film about the icon of jazz music and one of the best trumpeters in the history of recorded music - the legendary Miles Davis.The movie is called “Miles Ahead”, directed by Don Cheadle who is also the main star, playing Miles Davis. Emayatzy Corinealdi and Ewan McGregor are also in the movie, that had its premiere at the New York Film Festival on October 11, 2015. “The central story takes place in two days, before he made his comeback (in 1980),” Cheadle says. The “B story,” as he calls it, reflects back to 1956-66, which parallels Davis’ relationship with his first wife, dancer Frances Taylor Davis. As with “Born to be Blue”, the trailer announces a good movie.
When Chet Baker started playing, everybody was comparing him to Miles Davis, despite Davis’ move away from the early sound that he shared with Baker. Joachim-Ernst Berendt, a German music journalist, even said that “Chet Baker is a better interpreter of the ideas of Miles Davis than Miles himself”. Charlie Parker, skilled in talent spotting, once jokingly warned Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis: “You better look out, there’s a little white cat on the coast who’s gonna eat you up.” Well, as I said in the beginning, it will be a treat this spring for all jazz fans. In the meantime, we can still enjoy their music.
