Mother Love Bone Frontman Remembered in Film by Greg Prato
Excerpt: To some, Seattle band Mother Love Bone is best known as the precursor to Pearl Jam, as both bassist Jeff Ament and guitarist Stone Gossard were members. But the focus is on late frontman Andrew Wood in the new documentary "Malfunkshun: The Andrew Wood Story," which was directed by Scot Barbour and features interviews with a host of Seattle musicians.
Two Feet Thick "LoveRock Awaits..." by Kathy Davis
Excerpt: Barbour's realistic, balanced story of Andy Wood's charisma, talent, and foibles is also a historically important film for any Pearl Jam fan, as Andy played such an important role in the band's history. He was the one who went before, the one without whom ... The film presents a treasure trove of previously unseen photos and home movies from the Wood family archives and the collections of his bandmates.
The Oregonian "Grunge and the Unsung Genius" by Shawn Levy
Excerpt: The film combines elements of "Crumb," Terry Zwigoff's portrait of an artist who survived a titanically dysfunctional upbringing; "Yellow Submarine," with its trippy animated renditions of Beatles songs; and an episode of "VH1's Behind the Music" or some such tearing-back-the-curtains tell-all about excess and its deadly cost.
Seattle Weekly by Tim Appelo
Excerpt: Malfunkshun nicely captures his (Andy Wood's) punkish, puckish, Kiss-ified dandyism and the dreamy, wandering-in-the-melodic- wilderness quality of his imagination. Instead of Eddie Vedder's simply guttural growl, he had a glammier persona and a voice slightly like Cornell's—soaring, with a sob. The "Crown of Thorns" he sang of in his great song, immortalized on Cameron Crowe's Singles soundtrack, was subtler than his successor Vedder's infectious angst. Not simply the Australopithecus Eddie Vedder, he was grunge's lost genius, its Thomas Chatterton, the symbol of sensitivity and infinite promise snuffed in its first bloom. The film helps conveys why he inspired Seattle's scene.
Film critic Robert Horton reviewed Malfunkshun on radio station KUOW Seattle.
Excerpt: "a really solid documentary, really heartfelt, very well researched and really gives you a nice feel for the Seattle music scene in the 1980s - I thought it was really valuable as a record of that [the music scene] and an interesting character study."
Listen to the clip at KUOW Seattle. (Around the 44 minute mark)
variety.com article
Excerpt: ...From the moving opening narration by Wood's father to the teary-eyed closing comments by his mother, Andrew Wood is shown not only as a cautionary tale about drug addiction but also as an important part of our local music history. Most importantly, though, he's lovingly portrayed as a shining star who unfortunately burned out years before his time.
Seattle Weekly review
Seattle Times Long overdue credit for grunge precursor. By Patrick MacDonald (music critic)
Hot Docs Press Release (re: 2005 showing in toronto)
Excerpt: The stylistic innovation of first-timer Scot Barbour's MALFUNKSHUN, which "weaves subject Andrew Wood's music and lyrics into the fabric of the film," (is) on the cutting-edge of a new class of ingenious and, perhaps, slightly off-beat documentarians.
Excerpt: The one movie I have to see is Malfunkshun: The Andrew Wood Story. The film is not yet done, but director Scot Barbour is screening it as a work in progress at Slamdance. Even in the rough-cut format, Barbour’s portrait of the late lead singer of Seattle’s brilliant Mother Love Bone is amazing. Wood was the class clown we all knew and loved, a talented genius who died of a heroin overdose at age 24. I think of all the people like Wood I’ve known, and I find myself crying during the film.
Excerpt: Later this month, the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival takes Toronto by storm for its 12th year, running April 22 - May 1. Many of the 100+ films featured in the festival are world premieres, and although there isn't space to cover all the gems here, a small selection of the more anticipated docs include "The Cross and Bones," "Homemade Hillbilly Jam," and "Malfunkshun."
In another highly anticipated music documentary, Scot Barbour's "Malfunkshun" serves as a love letter to obscure musician Andrew Wood. As the charismatic lead singer of Mother Love Bone, Wood was a huge influence on the Seattle music scene, but died of an overdose in 1990, just before the band's debut album was to be released. Band members Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament went on to form Pearl Jam, but Barbour makes sure that Wood's story is not forgotten - told here with captivating home movies, unreleased songs, and heartfelt interviews with family and friends."