Agile, Mobile, Hostile: A Year with Andre Williams (2008)

Director:

Tricia Todd

Genre:

Documentary

Plot:

A look at the year in the life of R&B musician Andre Williams. |

Cast

  (Credited cast)

Andre Williams

...

Himself

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

from hero to zero - but still a hero

This tragic but often hilarious documentary shows the 72 year old music legend, Andre Williams, as a struggling drug addicted alcoholic, forced to stay in cheap motels and old people's homes, as he has very little money, and his health is deteriorating. The film starts as a biography, explaining his history and achievements with the aid of interviews and archive footage, but ends up focusing more heavily on how Andre finds it difficult to tour and perform in his old age, and is a difficult man for his band mates to get along with. There is a depressing contrast between the success of his early musical career with songs like 'shake a tail feather' and 'bacon fat' being legendary and his being brought out like an old bear at the circus in his twilight years, to perform, perhaps against his will, as a result of his poverty caused by the cruelty of the music industry and his own lack of foresight. The overwhelming message to be taken from the film is Andre's relentless optimism, passion for life, for women, for sex, for fun and high spirits, despite having so little to show for his remarkable career, he rarely lets his bitterness show, and despite the depressing reality, Andre's magnetic character and determined sense of hope make the film ultimately very uplifting.