20,000 Days on Earth

This new documentary film follows Nick Cave through a day-in-the-life...or does it?
Having spent his life (20,000 days, to be exact) sculpting a carefully conceived public persona, Nick Cave isn’t about to let anyone knock it down. Don’t go see this day-in-the-life doc expecting scenes of him changing into pyjamas or shopping in Sainsbury’s – directors Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard are here to embellish the mystique, not to pop it. Cue oneiric shots of the baritone balladeer gliding down unnaturally green lawns and lunching in fairytale cottages overlooking the white cliffs of Dover. Cave talks frankly about personal matters, and friends and colleagues (including Kylie Minogue) crop up to add their two cents; but it’s all presented in a deliberately stagey way, such that the veracity of what we’re seeing is always in doubt. Forsyth and Pollard made their names directing elaborate reenactments of historical events, including Ziggy Stardust’s final gig. In 20,000 Days on Earth, their docufiction approach finds its ideal subject.