Moonage Daydream

If you're unfamiliar with Bowie's career, you're not going to get a lot of facts out of this so-called documentary. Consisting of lots and lots of Bowie footage stitched together with various experimental and avant garde pieces of cinema, it's often difficult to separate the music video clips from the non-Bowie media. But seeing it in Imax was an excellent experience, a visceral celebration of the life of an unadulterated entertainer.

The Thin White Duke walked so Kanye could run.

A brilliant audiovisual collage that traces David Bowie's creative evolution throughout many stages.

A deep, wallowing soak in all things Bowie – his various art, his influences and smattering of autobiography skillfully cut down and sown back together by Morgen and his collaborators. Admittedly by design, this has greater appeal as “fan service” than it does to the more casual observer (raises hand), but still provides a fascinating and widely encompassing view of Bowie’s iconography; if the free-wheeling structure buckles the film during the final stretch, the overall impact is formidable.

As someone who grew up in Singapore, watching Bowie go through an existential crisis while aimlessly wandering Far East Plaza was very relatable.

Spontaneous reaction is that this is either one of the most astute documentaries on the process of creating that just happens to be about Bowie, and that it easily manages to disprove the old idea that Bowie was always inconsistent; or, that it's so desperate to sell us the concept of Bowie's conceptual continuity that it creates a perfect illusion of it, which is just as impressive.

I think anyone who is looking for a linear documentary will be disappointed, for this documentary is as ethereal and constantly shifting as Bowie was in life. I do think there are some great things here - the contemporary imagery from culture, film, and art that helps set the stage for the different eras of Bowie's career, the constant thread of Bowie's own internal monologue, pulled through some very honest interviews the artist has done, and, of course, the insane live performances.

A sensible doco to make about someone this elusive. There's a sense of transparency about his life and career, as Bowie reveals himself through voice and footage (not many others are seen or heard, aside from crying fans). And yet there's also the sly feeling that he's keeping more secrets that he's revealing. But either way, this is a nicely kaleidoscopic doco, not too conventional, and gets across Bowie's inspiring hard-working and hard-creating ethic.

C - Not a documentary, not sure what it is really. Extended mash-up of Bowie songs/videos/performances and quotes from him from old interviews. Not for everyone, but if you're on the right wavelength, it's really something.

This is not a concert film. It is not an interview film. It is not a biography film. It is an experimental art film that is all of those things at once. You'll see a Bowie concert, with audio of an interview with Bowie laid on top of it, while a kaleidoscope of images of him swirls around and around. I would have much rather learned something about him, or be entertained by his music.

This was perfect. That's what Bowie's deserves. Brett Morgen used very stunning visual language. All the animations made for this doc, live concert footages, scenes from his films and music videos have been brought together in a perfect editing like a film.

Morgen's audio-visual montage is very well suited to showing that Bowie's appeal to audiences - including myself - was his seeming to be a continuum manifested as an individual, that is a continuity as a determinant. Bowie described himself as a generalist, but more than this he was an existent general, which of course is impossible, and hence the grand illusions that was Ziggy Stardust/Aladdin Sane/Halloween Jack/Thin White Duke/The Blind Prophet.

Probably won't ever be a fan of Bowie's music, but this is pretty excellent.

Ever-changing and enigmatic, just like the person at the center. An interesting look at the music, art, and philosophy of one of the greats.

Bowie is the most perfect entity to ever exist (I won't say "human" because that's too small a word), and this sensory experience does a great job of capturing all of his beauty and majesty. The truest of artists.

Bowie was such a great artist that it's hard to notice what art Morgen is adding, but once I did it's all over, from choice of shots to music mixing to turning a collection of shots into a narrative thread, this movie adds on to Bowie's career and gives us an experience well worth your time.

The most sincere documentary I've ever seen. Nothing but live shows and candid talks straight from the Starman himself, framed & edited with spellbinding precision.

Acho que esse é bem o doc feito para fãs, não é didático para quem quer conhecer o Bowie, mas passa flanando sobre suas fases para os "entendidos". Escolhi ver esse na data de aniversário do Ziggy Stardust não à toa, talvez meu disco favorito de todos os tempos. YTS.

Bowie is an interesting guy to begin with, and through a plethora of interview clips the doc lets him be the chronicler of his own life. And while I feel that Morgen overdoes it in some of the many montages, it can't be argued that his flashy approach doesn't fit his subject.

Music videos, concert footage and interviews edited together in an impressionistic way with clips from movies in which Bowie acted or that he liked, all intended to give a sense of an artist constantly in search of cosmic significance. I never really listened to Bowie's music, or managed to pay sustained attention to his work, although it seemed to have interesting aspects, but this probably offers a fairly good overview, if one can accept the quickfire parade of images and musical snippets.

"Moonage Daydream" is a perfect tribute to David Bowie, a transcendent experience that goes beyond the typical celebrity bio-doc format. Brett Morgen's film is a cinematic marvel, evoking an acid trip with its kaleidoscopic visuals and incredible rock music soundtrack. While some viewers may find it challenging to keep up with the constantly shifting identity and psychedelic style of the film, it's a minor quibble in an otherwise perfect film.

Love to see the footage we haven't seen before and the insight from the man himself.

Bowie through the eyes of Bowie. Becomes a bit meandering in its second half but still a strong and mesmerising look at one of music biggest icons.

o mais perto do à altura do bowie que um filme pode chegar

Not a documentary, just a long, disjointed, frenetic series of music videos with very brief moments of calm. Reminded me of a migraine attack during a psychedelic trip during an exchange of gunfire; left after an hour when it became clear it wouldn't change, and I wouldn't like it any better. Went home and read, and that was lovely.

More a piece of artwork than a documentary - it’s a montage of sound and vision-and I think probably captures the spirit of Bowie as an Artist.

Bowie’s life through sound and vision. Sometimes lags, pacing uneven, but a lovely, aggressive work

David Bowie definitely one of the GOATs. A visual experience with great editing and use of archive footage and music/meanings:

Don't expect to see too much unseen Bowie footage, do expect to see half of Metropolis through a color filter. There's a good bit post credits.