“It might seem crazy what I’m about to say.” But this fun-to-watch bio/music/documentary should’ve been titled Happy and not Piece by Piece. That’s the vibe. That’s the depth.
Certainly, Pharrell Williams is worthy of a movie about his musical feats. He’s won 13 Grammy Awards; an Academy Award nomination (Happy for Despicable Me 2) and his productions have sold around 100M copies worldwide. Certainly, if Sean Combs could produce a film about himself, (Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: A Bad Boy Story), Williams is entitled too. Right?
Once upon a time, a precocious young kid from the projects of Virginia Beach, dreamed big and out of the box. “I knew I was different. People would say, ‘Oh that’s an odd child.’ But I loved music. Music would come out of me,” said Williams. Almost predestined, he teamed up with his pal Chad Hugo, whom he’d known since 7th grade, and they formed the production duo The Neptunes. The rest is modern music history—a redacted version.
The idea of interviewing fellow musicians and important people in Williams’ life, is standard. What’s not so standard is having the Oscar-winning documentarian Morgan Neville (20 Feet From Stardom) add those voices to LEGO figures. Like he was actually doing a ‘question and answer’ with cartoon characters: LEGOs; superstar musicians. That weird juxtaposition doesn’t get old for 93 fascinating minutes.
It’s odd and charming to see cartoon versions of Williams, Neville, Kendrick Lamar, Gwen Stefani, Jay-Z, Pusha T, Timbaland, Justin Timberlake and Busta Rhymes. The coolest one has to be Snoop Dogg. Hearing his smooth-talking voice, with that urban cadence and those rhyming words, but not seeing the real Snoop emphasizes his ‘charm-and-disarm’ speaking skills. It all proves that animating this documentary is a very effective gimmick.
Neville also uses archival footage and shoots new scenes with Williams in his old neighborhood. It’s all transferred to a LEGO motif. The colors, figures and cartoony movement are eye catching. The more you watch, the more playful the footage becomes. It’s all so novel and cool, it almost makes up for the lack of depth and soul-searching that fuels strong non-fiction films.
This is not an expository documentary that has a central thesis and builds to its theory, or an observational fly-on-the-wall doc. Closer to a performative doc that embraces the filmmakers’ point of view and emotions in a very subjective way. If you’re expecting objectivity, find another film. If you’re looking for Williams to reveal some of the tougher parts of his career, it isn’t that kind of party.
Williams was entangled in a lawsuit over his writing and production work on Robin Thick’s chart-topping summer 2013 hit ‘Blurred Lines.’ He’s also involved in a recent lawsuit with Chad Hugo over naming rights connected to the name The Neptunes. Neville doesn’t ask the producer extraordinaire the toughest questions. Which is a pity, as both these career challenges could be enlightening, cautionary tales for those contemplating a music industry career, particularly as a producer. If you can scream from the rafters, “I firmly believe that everyone has talent, beauty and potential.” You can scream from the rafters, “Don’t fall into this trap. Here’s what I learned. Be careful.”
Some of the comraderie is heartwarming. Pusha T had lost his record deal when Williams approached him with a new beat that reignited his career. ‘Hot in Herre’ brought Nelly good fortune. As did ‘I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)’ for Jay-Z, ‘Hollaback Girl’ for Gwen Stefani and ‘Drop It Like It’s Hot’ for Snoop Dogg. Looking for depressing songs? Stop looking—Williams doesn’t write ‘em. Looking for complex music? None. Catchy, simple brain-worm pop/soul/hip-hop confections are his thing. And those are the tunes audiences will hum when they leave the theater or click off the remote.
Neville was greatly aided by writers/editors Oscar Vazquez and Aaron Wickenden, along with editor Jason Zeldes. Howard Baker, the film’s animation director, and the animation studios Tongal, Pure Imagination and Zebu did their part. On view is a unique blend of animation and music doc sensibilities that almost create a new genre.
This ditty may not be the insightful, revealing doc some theater audiences seek. Instead, it’s a light, cartoony confection aimed at those who love music, like being happy and can relate to a nerdy kid who made good. “Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof.”
