Listening to Kenny G is a 2021 American documentary film, directed by Penny Lane. It is about the jazz musician Kenny G.
| Listening to Kenny G | |
|---|---|
 Promotional release poster | |
| Directed by | Penny Lane |
| Produced by | Gabriel Sedgwick |
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Naiti Gámez |
| Edited by |
|
| Music by | Charlie Rosen |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | HBO |
Release dates | |
Running time | 97 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Production
editInitially, Bill Simmons, the creator of HBO’s Music Box series, invited Penny Lane to make a music documentary. Lane chose Kenny G as the subject of the film because he is "a musician who is objectively popular, by way of record sales, but is also hated by the 'critical class'." Kenny G himself had no control of the content of the film.[1]
Release
editListening to Kenny G premiered at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival.[2] The film screened at the Hamptons International Film Festival.[3] It aired on HBO as part of Bill Simmons' Music Box anthology.[4][5] It debuted on December 2, 2021 on HBO and was also available to stream on HBO Max.[6] It was screened as the opening night film at DOC NYC 2021.[7] It was released on December 11, 2021 on Binge in Australia.[8]
Reception
editThe New Yorker listed Listening to Kenny G as one of the best films of 2021.[9] Richard Brody of The New Yorker wrote, "By listening attentively to Kenny G, Lane delivers, in a buoyant, amiable way, a ferocious denunciation, one in which she herself doesn't voice a negative word—because he does most of the inadvertent, unconscious damning."[10]
Glenn Kenny of The New York Times wrote, "The movie's animating question is why a musician who has brought an abundance of pleasure to so many listeners makes so many others almost incoherently angry. Some interviewees, including Kenny G himself, imply that judgments against his work are de facto judgments of the people who love it. That's a specious conclusion, one which the movie could have unpacked better."[11]
References
edit- ^ Morfoot, Addie (2021-09-11). "Penny Lane Tunes Up 'Listening to Kenny G' Doc at Toronto Festival". Variety.
- ^ Morfoot, Addie (2021-09-08). "Toronto's Scaled-Down Slate Features Documentaries on Devastating Fires, a Prison Uprising and Kenny G". Variety. Retrieved 2021-09-12.
- ^ "Release info Listening to Kenny G". IMBD. Retrieved 22 November 2023.
- ^ Blauvelt, Christian (2021-09-12). "'Listening to Kenny G' Review: Penny Lane Can Challenge Conventional Wisdom Better Than Anyone". IndieWire. Retrieved 2021-09-12.
- ^ Fienberg, Daniel (2021-09-12). "HBO's 'Listening to Kenny G': TV Review | TIFF 2021". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2021-09-12.
- ^ "HBO Documentary LISTENING TO KENNY G, A Portrait Of One Of The Most Beloved And Reviled Figures In Jazz, Debuts December 2". Warner Media. 2021-11-02.
- ^ "Listening to Kenny G". DOC NYC.
- ^ "Airdate: Listening to Kenny G". TV Tonight. November 29, 2021.
- ^ "The Best Movies of 2021". The New Yorker. 2021-12-02.
- ^ "Listening to Kenny G" Is an Ironic Masterpiece". The New Yorker. 2021-12-04. Archived from the original on 2021-12-06.
- ^ "'Listening to Kenny G' Review: Good Sax?". The New York Times. 2021-12-02. Archived from the original on 2021-12-06.