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Movies / On DVD / The Nomi Song
The Nomi Song

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The Nomi Song (2005)

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Reviews Counted:36

Fresh:34

Rotten:2

Average Rating:7.2/10

Consensus: A fascinating, if occasionally frustrating, documentary about Klaus Nomi, a cult figure in the New Wave Underground scene during the '80s.

Rated: Not Rated

Runtime: 1 hr 36 mins

Genre: Education/General Interest

Theatrical Release:Feb 4, 2005 Limited

Synopsis: He came from outer space to save the human race. Looks like an alien, sings like a diva - Klaus Nomi was one of 1980's most profoundly bizarre appearances. He was a cult figure in the New Wave... He came from outer space to save the human race. Looks like an alien, sings like a diva - Klaus Nomi was one of 1980's most profoundly bizarre appearances. He was a cult figure in the New Wave Underground scene who sang pop music like opera and brought opera to club audiences. He was a performer with a "look" so strong, that his first audiences went wild before he even opened his mouth. On the verge of international fame as a singer, he instead became one of the first prominent artists to die of AIDS. But the reaction Klaus Nomi provoked was so strong, that he is still unforgettable, even 20 years after his death. Nomi constructed his own myth out of elements so completely "wrong", yet so deliberate, that it all seemed oddly possible. He was an alien amongst the outcasts, a tortured soul who also radiated optimism at a time when optimism was "officially" out of fashion. He was as much a genuine talent as he was the engine of his own destruction. His appeal is not easy to explain in words. He has to be seen - and heard - to be believed. It is hard to limit this film to being called a documentary. It is rather a non-fiction film, maybe even an oral history. But it's also visual, partly because Nomi himself was so visual, someone who's main concern was putting forth an image of himself in everything he did - literally illustrated by the photos, films, videos and artworks that go with it. What unifies the various stylistic elements is Klaus Nomi himself, not only the all pervasive image he put out, but more importantly, his effect on others. It's a story that grows out of a group of people who influenced him, loved him, felt pity for him or betrayed by him, yet above all, were inspired by him. The Nomi Song is a story of love of music and love of performing at a time when it seemed as though everyone was struck by a sense of urgency to make something - anything - simply because "somewhere in the great cosmic plan we all knew that we only had a finite amount of time together and we had to make the most of it." -- © Palm Pictures [More]

Starring: Ann Magnuson, Gabriele Lafari, David McDermott

Starring: Ann Magnuson, Gabriele Lafari, David McDermott

Director: Andrew Horn

Director: Andrew Horn
Studio: Palm Pictures

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Release:

Jun 14, 2005

No Details Exist
 
 

Reviews for The Nomi Song

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1 - 20 (sorted by source)
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The Nomi Song should go a long way toward recementing this striking creature's legendary status.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
02/27/05
Marc Savlov
Marc Savlov
Austin Chronicle
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
09/26/05
AV Club

Amusingly and wistfully records how the artist and his crowd tried to make a success of it beyond the Mudd Club and other downtown haunts.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
03/04/05
Ty Burr
Ty Burr
Boston Globe
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
03/05/05
Boston Phoenix

The power of even the muddiest B&W images is remarkable, Nomi's delicate whiteface visage penetrating the murk, his falsetto pure and free of irony.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
02/04/05
Sheri Linden
Sheri Linden
Boxoffice Magazine

The Nomi Song is pieced together from photos, performance footage, and talking-head interviews, but director Andew Horn has taken great care to fashion a strong story arc.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
06/03/05
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
06/11/05
Chicago Tribune

A well-made doc of a beyond-description music act that combined cabaret, operatic falsetto, and the stark minimalism of a cheesy 1940 sci-fi pic.

Full Review Source: Cinema Signals | comment Comment
06/26/05
Jules Brenner
Jules Brenner
Cinema Signals

While he was never a Top 40 hitmaker, Klaus Nomi was an important artist...and The Nomi Song is a cinematic anthem to his unorthodox individuality.

Full Review Source: DVD Verdict | comment Comment
07/31/05
Bill Gibron
Bill Gibron
DVD Verdict

It's a heartfelt tribute to a man who never felt loved enough.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
02/04/05
E! Online

Forget Devo, Nico, Bowie, or Beefheart: The most mesmerizing freak show in the history of rock & roll was Klaus Nomi.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Weekly | comment Comment
02/09/05
Owen Gleiberman
Owen Gleiberman
Entertainment Weekly
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

A vivid portrait, not only of the man, but of an era, an era in which creativity ruled in a New York which, for all its vicissitudes, was far more welcoming to artists than it is now.

Full Review Source: Film Journal International | comment Comment
03/24/05
David Noh
David Noh
Film Journal International

honest and well articulated, but the picture they paint is far from compelling

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
02/18/05
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

Nomi Song pays tribute to both the man born Klaus Sperber and his anything goes era.

Full Review Source: Hollywood Reporter | comment Comment
02/23/05
Michael Rechtshaffen
Michael Rechtshaffen
Hollywood Reporter
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

On the one hand, this is standard-issue autobio documentary filmmaking; on the other, with Klaus Nomi as the focus of our attention, all conventional notions (and notions of convention) are altogether burned away.

Full Review Source: L.A. Weekly | comment Comment
02/03/05
Ernest Hardy
Ernest Hardy
L.A. Weekly

Horn, who knew Nomi, does an excellent job of evoking the exhilaratingly hedonistic period the film covers as well as the long shadow that the coming of AIDS casts over it.

Full Review Source: Los Angeles Times | comment Comment
02/03/05
Kevin Crust
Kevin Crust
Los Angeles Times

Andrew Horn's film charts Nomi's remarkable rise, his brief cult fame and his untimely flameout in 1983 as one of the arts community's earliest AIDS fatalities.

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
02/24/05
Colin Covert
Colin Covert
Minneapolis Star Tribune

Like Nomi's work, there is some distinct style at play that reflects its subject matter.

Full Review Source: Movie Views | comment Comment
07/15/05
Ryan Cracknell
Ryan Cracknell
Movie Views

[S]trange and fascinating ... gives off a rich whiff of the New York punk bohemia of the late 1970s and early '80s.

Full Review Source: MTV | comment Comment
03/18/05
Kurt Loder
Kurt Loder
MTV

If retro ain’t your thing, fear not; this doesn’t feel dated in the least.

Full Review Source: New Times | comment Comment
05/28/05
Luke Y. Thompson
Luke Y. Thompson
New Times
 
 
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