Editor’s Note: This is a re-post of our review from the 2021 Sundance Film Festival. The Sparks Brothersis now playing in theaters.
I am not a music person. I love music and listen to it all the time, but I doubt I could tell you much about any particular band beyond, “I like the way they sound.” This is my way of telling you that until I sawEdgar Wright’s documentaryThe Sparks Brothers, I had no awareness of the band Sparks or had even heard their music beyond their hit single, “This Town Ain’t Big Enough for the Both of Us.” And yet rather than judging ignorant folks like me,The Sparks Brothersis a constantly inviting us in, taking the audience by the hand rather than chastising us for a lack of knowledge. By focusing solely on the music, Wright not only charts the band’s waxing and waning popularity, but successfully argues that their enduring power comes from following their artistic integrity rather than trying to chase trends or make hits. With his signature humor and warm-hearted instincts, Wright manages to covert new followers withThe Sparks Brothersrather than simply preaching to the converted.
With a career spanning five decades and 25 albums, Sparks began as Halfnelson, but the studio felt they could have more success with a reissue and rebranding, and so they pitched The Sparks Brothers as a play on The Marx Brothers, and the core duo—brothersRon and Russell Mael—compromised with “Sparks.” But that compromise is one of the few times they would ever make such a concession as Wright shows by chronicling all of their albums and how those albums were greeted as well as their current legacy. The consistent theme running through all of Sparks’ work is that they’re typically ahead of the curve, the right band at the wrong time, and they’ve managed to stay prolific and exciting because they’re more interested in the music they want to make rather than trying to guess what might be popular.
When you see how Wright depicts Sparks—as a blend of music and visuals with a cheeky sense of humor—you may see the kinship he feels towards them. You can also understand why most artists would revere this kind of band that has managed to make their work about the work rather than how many platinum albums they’ve cranked out. Most mainstream entertainment rests, at best, on the “One for them, one for me” model, and so Sparks simply eschews mainstream success. They make the music they want to make, and then attempt to see where the audience may be even if that audience may be based in the U.K. (to the point where people assumed the American-born-and-raised Maels were British artists) or elsewhere in Europe rather than stateside.
To Wright’s great credit, this 140-minute love letter never feels overbearing thanks to a skillful mix of animation, charming talking heads (with the occasional joke “descriptor” thrown in like referring toJason Schwartzmanas “Talia Shire’s Son”), and the fact that Ron and Russell Mael are themselves incredibly endearing with their dry sense of humor. You get the sense that while they take their work seriously, they don’t really take themselves seriously, and that the story here isn’t about their personal lives (The Sparks Brotherstalks about Ron and Russell’s youth, but once the band begins, don’t expect any “Behind the Music” drama) but about their devotion to their art. It makes for a poppy documentary about pop musicians who really haven’t received their due because they’re so difficult to categorize as well as their relative indifference towards commercial success.
The Maels’ approach to creativity, which one talking head describes as “creative recklessness”, is incredibly inspirational and uplifting because it shows that true artists create not because they want to be famous or rich but because they have to. They need to create to keep themselves interested, and if that attracts a following, then that’s great, but the creative impulse is greater. Even if you’re not won over by Sparks’ music (which would be surprising since they’ve made so many bangers), you may respect what they’re doing and how Wright chooses to show that respect. Sparks’ inclinations didn’t always win them legions of fans, and they cycled through quite a few supporting band members over the years, but they stayed true to their music, and that purity of vision is rare and worth supporting.
The Sparks Brothersis the rare music documentary that’s solely about the music. Other groups may offer more salacious personal details and internecine conflicts, butThe Sparks Brothersis so focused on the music that it leaves all the personal bits by the wayside. For someone like me who could always stand to learn more about music and music history, that makes Wright’s documentary a treasure where I was always eager to learn about the next album in the band’s discography. I still may not be able to speak intelligently about music, but I’m at least glad to have a new band whose music I want more of. Looking at the history of Sparks, they’ll be there to provide it.
