There’s already been so much said, written and broadcast about Joy Division and the Factory Records story that you could be forgiven for not having the patience to wade through yet another chapter in the story of Tony Wilson and the rest of the gobby cast that strode the Manchester stage of the ’70s and ’80s. From ‘24 Hour Party People’ to the recent coverage of Wilson’s death to a new documentary on the box only the other week, this tale of bands, big egos and bad business sense has an appeal way beyond its roots. The photographer Anton Corbijn has now added Control to the throng, and his contribution – a black-and-white study of the life and death of Ian Curtis – is more sombre and grounded and less playful than the comic spins we’ve come to expect. Watching the film, one is left with a sense of Curtis as the subject for an intense photographic study as much as a figure ripe for probing drama. There are plenty of shots of Curtis walking down the street or smoking a fag or looking out of windows. The film’s real energy and excitement are in the live scenes, which are unfussy, extended and electric.  

Dir Anton Corbijn 2007. UK/USA/ Australia/Japan. 122 mins. M18. Samantha Morton, Sam Riley, Alexandra Maria Lara, Joe Anderson.

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