Can't Stand Losing You: Surviving the Police (2012)

A documentary about the rise of The Police.

Directors:

Andy Grieve, Lauren Lazin

Stars:

Sting, Andy Summers, Stewart Copeland

Cast

Credited cast:
Stewart Copeland
The Police	...	Themselves
Sting
Andy Summers

Storyline

Based on the acclaimed memoir One Train Later by rock guitarist Andy Summers, Can't Stand Losing You: Surviving the Police follows Summers' journey from his early days in the psychedelic '60s music scene, when he played with The Animals, to chance encounters with drummer Stewart Copeland and bassist Sting, which led to the formation of a punk trio, The Police. During the band's phenomenal rise and its dissolution at the height of their popularity in the mid-80s, Summers captured history with his candid photographs. Utilizing rare archival footage and insights from the guitarist's side of the stage, Can't Stand Losing You: Surviving the Police brings together past and present as the band members reunite, more than two decades later, for a global reunion tour in 2007.

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Plot Keywords:

archival footage | british music | cult hero | music from the 80s | 1980s | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography | History | Music

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official Distributor Site Official Facebook Page

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 November 2013 (Japan)

Also Known As:

Can't Stand Losing You: Surviving the Police

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,656, 22 March 2015, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$23,193, 10 May 2015

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bob Yari Productions

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

A 1991 Saturday Night Live episode where Sting was the musical host, Sting played himself in a skit where he is in a high rise elevator, and the other occupants decide to sing the song (or more so one word: "Rox-ANNE"!), to Sting's eventual annoyance.

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Connections

Referenced in The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Jeremy Piven/Ariana Grande/Joshua Topolsky (2015)

User Reviews

Informative but not very engaging

I thought it was interesting to hear the story of the band from someone other than Sting, who sometimes seem to get all the credit for their success. This isn't fair, of course, since Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers are very talented musicians in their own right.

This doesn't shine through very clearly in the documentary, however. For a film that follows the guitar player in one of the biggest bands of their time, from his childhood until The Police's reunion tour in 2007, you really don't feel like you know him at the end of the journey. You basically hear him read what seems to be his diary throughout the whole thing, inter-cut with concert footage and interviews. At times, it feels like you're listening to an audio book with accompanying pictures. This makes for a film that, despite being personal and very informative, somehow still keeps the viewer at a considerable distance. As a result, the film comes off as rather dull and drags more than I bet was intended.

It's a good documentary for the avid Police fan, but I doubt whether it's entertaining enough for casual viewers.