Full Spectrum Affection
The BFI London Film Festival is genuinely one of my highlights of the year, every year. With an incredibly broad mix of storytelling in a multitude of forms, from a myriad of countries and the ability to recognise pretty much all tastes. There may be elements that don’t really do anything for you, and then there are works that tick every single one of your boxes possible, then invent entire new strata of boxes, only to immediately and joyfully check all them too.
Sashay forward with an exuberant and radiant smile… The Extraordinary Miss Flower.
I first became aware of what is ultimately an ongoing, and constantly evolving project of unfettered love, for an individual, and for life itself, when Flush covered the genesis of it all in our review of Emilana Torrini’s album Miss Flower (reviewed here: https://www.flushthefashion.com/music/music-review-emiliana-torrini-miss-flower/). An ethereally beautiful and mesmerising homage to an equally hypnotic person, the album, as it transpires, was just a mere tantalising, and intoxicating taste of what was to come.
It was through researching the background to the album that I learned of the forthcoming adaption, or more realistically the jubilant creative explosion that is the performance film ‘The Extraordinary Miss Flower’ directed by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard, the very folk who brought us the outstanding ‘20,000 Days on Earth’ (2014), a film about the life thus far of one Nick Cave.
In every way imaginable, and as gorgeous as the album is, it really was just the seed, that has now been lovingly nurtured into the musical equivalent of Kew Gardens, such is the radiant colour, joy, life and warmth that emanates from every single second of the film. To say they embraced the title is an understatement, but ‘Extraordinary’ is absolutely deserved across the board, from artists, musicians, lyrics, performances, writing, lighting, sets, sound, cinematography, editing and of course direction.
The highly contagious celebratory nature of it all feels more like a spontaneous jam session, an exuberant care-free flow state with a giddy sense of a ‘For One Night Only’ performance, where everyone involved gives everything they have in honour of the story and inspiration. It has a wonderful sense of slightly controlled, gently steered chaos, playfully trying to capture something that can’t actually be contained, only providing fleeting spectacular glimpses, hinting at the most amazing thing we all get to share, all too briefly, life itself.
There’s a jovial glee to the seemingly loose editing, bouncing between beautifully grounded shots of musicians smiling at each other when they realise they have successfully given their all, to intertwined audio, conversations, visuals, set pieces, choreography and performances, all layered upon each other, reminiscent of sifting through the case of discovered photos and letters that were the very catalyst for the entire project.
To portray such freedom of course demands profound skill, by individuals at the top of their game, and in symbiosis with everything around them. I have no knowledge of how long the shoot was, or how many takes etc were done, but it absolutely feels as free-spirited, honest, unbridled and as intoxicating an experience as it must have been to be sitting in a cafe with Geraldine Flower herself.
Said cafe is a running visual thread throughout the film, staged both in style of set and film stock of the 1970s, as the story intermittently unfolds of Geraldine’s genuinely extraordinary life and escapades. Through playful endearing, meandering chats between Miss Flower (Caroline Catz) and Emilíana, in addition to truly hysterical renditions of her letters read by guests including Alice Lowe and Nick Cave amongst many others, there is some gob smacking and life enhancing outrageously funny moments as the inner thinking’s of former forlorn, besotted suitors become the eternal musings of pining poets.
Suffice to say, if all this was randomly written as a script for a film, it would be deemed ridiculous, which only adds to the wanton celebration of it seeming too ludicrous to be true, yet here is life giving a knowing cheeky wink right back at us.
Each track from the album expands like the universe itself into ever increasingly beautiful moments of story, performance and creativity, with individual treatments to enhance their diverse nature and tone. These radiant flourishes utilise somewhat simplistic stage tricks with incredibly captivating, and at times psychedelic results, as each track becomes even more hypnotic and mesmerising than the previous, it is a genuine and loving splendour to behold.
Again, as mentioned previously, the album Miss Flower is beautiful in itself, but the expansion of song, story and medium into The Extraordinary, is like Dorthy stepping into Technicolor Oz. Hearing the tracks on a cinema sound system equally carries the same dramatic response, as the surrounds, embraces and warms you to your very core. Emilíana’s voice was already stunning, but now…
Years ago Professor George Land developed a test for NASA to source creative thinkers for the space program. Through his research he discovered that at the age of 5, 98% of the kids where inherently very creative, by the age of 15 it was 12%, finally adults at 2%. It was apparent that ‘non-creative behaviour is learned’, people actively suppress it.
The Extraordinary Miss Flower is a lighthouse beacon warding us away from such diminished existences. It is a celebration of a life force, and the lives she shone her light on, in turn nurturing others and creativity itself, the further her rays shine over time. If it all sounds somewhat romantic, that’s because it is. The film is to its very core about love, and how that tenderness can inspire entire lives, continuing to shine on well after the star has faded.
It’s also an incredible and beautifully fitting homage to a mother. We often ‘honour’ departed individuals with static, soulless stone, or brass carvings, plaques, meaningless objects devoid of warmth or celebration. This film, album and stories like it is how to truly honour a life, by being actively inspired by it, creating, sharing, enhancing and bringing smiles, love, unity and joy to all around us.
If the film doesn’t do that for you, bare minimum I hope it gets people back into writing letters… my, the stories one could, and should tell.
Incidentally, Emilíana has just released a Miss Flower (Remixes) EP, of course they are beautiful.
10/10
For more information on The Extraordinary Miss Flower check here. Emilíana Torrini Miss Flower (2024) is out now via Groënland Records. More information can be found at emilianatorrini.com