Control
2007 · Movie · R · 121 min · ★ 7.5 · 83% critics
Control follows Joy Division’s lead singer from his schoolboy days in 1973 to his death in 1980, building a portrait across years of ambition, relationships, and mounting pressure. It chronicles how personal struggles and the band’s early rise collide, leading up to the band’s first American tour.
Based on Touching from a Distance
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Details
- Years
- 2007
- Release date
- 2007-09-12
- Language
- English
- Rated
- R
- Runtime
- 121 min
- Max quality
- HD
- Critic score
- 83/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.5/10 (940 votes)
About
You’ll likely enjoy Control if you want a bleak, respectful rock biopic that treats music as part of a lived-in emotional world; Not for you if you prefer a lively music romp or want a more conventional, explanation-heavy story.
Pros: restrained emotional portrait; black-and-white mood; powerful lead performance | Cons: slow pacing at times; uneven momentum; varies by fan interest
Themes
- suicide
- new love
- wife
- epilepsy
- medicine
- punk rock
- recording contract
- record producer
- record label
- black and white
- extramarital affair
- joy division
- +1 more
Awards & recognition
- BAFTA Award — Best Newcomer · 2008
- British Independent Film Award — Best British Independent Film · 2007
- BAFTA Award — Best Actress in a Supporting Role · 2008 · nominated
- BAFTA Award — Best British Film · 2008 · nominated
- BAFTA Award — Best Newcomer · 2008 · nominated
Show all 8 awards →
- British Independent Film Award — Best British Independent Film · 2007 · nominated
- British Independent Film Award — Best Performance by an Actor in a British Independent Film · 2007 · nominated
- European Film Award — European Discovery of the Year · 2007 · nominated
Cast & crew
Sam Riley
as Ian Curtis
Samantha Morton
as Debbie Curtis
Alexandra Maria Lara
as Annik Honoré
Joe Anderson
as Hooky
Toby Kebbell
as Rob Greton
Craig Parkinson
as Tony Wilson
James Anthony Pearson
as Bernard Sumner
Harry Treadaway
as Steve Morris
- RS
Robert Shelly
as Twinny
- AS
Andrew Sheridan
as Terry
Directed by Anton Corbijn