Control (2007)

A profile of Ian Curtis, the enigmatic singer of Joy Division whose personal, professional, and romantic troubles led him to commit suicide at the age of 23.

Director:

Anton Corbijn

Writers:

Deborah Curtis (book), Matt Greenhalgh (screenplay)

Stars:

Sam Riley, Samantha Morton, Craig Parkinson

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 31 wins & 34 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sam Riley	...	Ian Curtis
Samantha Morton	...	Debbie Curtis
Alexandra Maria Lara	...	Annik Honore
Joe Anderson	...	Peter Hook aka Hooky
James Anthony Pearson	...	Bernard Sumner
Harry Treadaway	...	Steve Morris
Craig Parkinson	...	Tony Wilson
Toby Kebbell	...	Rob Gretton
Andrew Sheridan	...	Terry
Robert Shelly	...	Twinny
Richard Bremmer	...	Mr. Curtis - Ian's Father
Tanya Myers	...	Ian's Mother
Martha Myers Lowe	...	Ian's Sister (as Martha Myers-Lowe)
Matthew McNulty	...	Nick
David Whittington	...	Chemistry Teacher

Storyline

Ian Curtis is a quiet and rather sad lad who works for an employment agency and sings in a band called Warsaw. He meets a girl named Debbie whom he promptly marries and his band, of which the name in the meantime has been changed to Joy Division, gets more and more successful. Even though Debbie and he become parents, their relationship is going downhill rapidly and Ian starts an affair with Belgium Annik whom he met after one of the gigs and he's almost never at home. Ian also suffers from epilepsy and has no-good medication for it. He doesn't know how to handle the feelings he has for Debbie and Annik and the pressure the popularity of Joy Division and the energy performing costs him.

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Plot Keywords:

band | singer | suicide | depression | punk rock | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and brief sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [Germany]

Country:

UK USA Australia Japan France

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 September 2007 (France)

Also Known As:

Контроль

Filming Locations:

Manchester, Greater Manchester, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

€4,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£252,426 (United Kingdom), 7 October 2007, Limited Release

Opening Weekend USA:

$27,674, 14 October 2007, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$871,577, 27 January 2008

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$7,824,260

Company Credits

Production Co:

Becker Films, CINV, Claraflora

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to Samantha Morton, the director mortgaged his house to raise finance for the film.

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Goofs

Ian Curtis sits at home, watching the Werner Herzog film "Stroszek", opening a bottle of whiskey during a scene, where the mobile home of Stroszeks protagonists is auctioned off. In the next scene, presumably some time later, we see that Curtis is visibly intoxicated and that the bottle is almost empty. However, in "Stroszek" barely two minutes have gone by.

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Quotes

Bernard Sumner: I believe in pure... sex.

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Connections

Referenced in Ji-geum-eun-mat-go-geu-ddae-neun-teul-li-da (2015)

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Soundtracks

2HB
(Bryan Ferry)
Published by BMG Music Publishing Limited
Performed by Roxy Music
Courtesy of EMI Records Ltd

User Reviews

Surprised that it was so good

I read the reviews of this film and decided it was worth a punt. I have to say that although I was in Manchester during the 1970s I was not a fan of Punk music. This film is beautifully made - almost like a 1950/60s kitchen sink film of the gritty north (there are worse places than Macclesfield, believe me!). I don't know Joy Divsion's work but the acting in this film by the major players was excellent. Sam Riley as Curtis is very very good as is Samantha Morton as his downtrodden wife. I thought the guy who played the manager was a bit OTT. What a shame that Tony Wilson died before this was released. My reaction to it was much like the one I had to Trainspotting. I was convinced that I wouldn't like it but came away feeling that this was a very important film. Even if you don't know Punk music or Joy Division - go along. Well worth it.