Ultimately, Sound of Redemption honors the life of a noted musician, but doesn’t quite make the same impact as its subject or the music he left behind.

Full Review | Sep 14, 2022

Framed by a memorial concert at San Quentin, where the noted bebop player was incarcerated for many years, this 2014 documentary by N.C. Heikin lays bare the contradictions of his creative life.

Full Review | Aug 11, 2016

If you're into jazz, give it a look.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Jul 13, 2016

Strong evocation of the lesser-known bebop jazz scene in segregated L.A., and within San Quentin Prison and emphasis on his prodigious musical talent, make this film cool.

Full Review | Original Score: 8/10 | Jan 8, 2016

The late jazz great is honored with a terrific tribute concert and a respectful documentary.

Full Review | Dec 18, 2015

Collectively, the mixed approaches illuminate a complicated man, at once spiritual and temperamental.

Full Review | Dec 17, 2015

Despite a surfeit of talking-head commentary, the film has a strong feel for the emotion behind Frank Morgan's acclaimed bebop.

Full Review | Dec 14, 2015

It's a fond and forgiving tribute to the man, filled with music that moves beyond happy and sad, and toward something like brilliance.

Full Review | Dec 1, 2015

Heikin, unlike so many impatient directors, knows that in a doc about musicians, the music should breathe.

Full Review | Dec 1, 2015

[A] bittersweet ode to a phoenix who kept singeing his own wings.

Full Review | Sep 25, 2015