'Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami' A Review

Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami is a documentary about icon- actor, singer, and model- Grace Jones. The film follows Jones over an indeterminate amount of time during the mid-to-late 00's. She visits family in Jamaica, records an album, and tours with numbers from her various concerts interspersed throughout.

Part rock-doc part slice-of-life the film doesn't provide the typical talking head historical arc of its subject. The film is more mercurial, more fluid, more surprising much like Jones herself. Although a basic knowledge of Jones is helpful it is not necessary. The force, ferocity, and magnetism of her personality is undeniable and the various songs from her concerts are wonderfully potent. We are not only shown Jones the performer, which is unique and mystifying and enticing, but we are also shown a glimpse of Jones the person, mysterious and contradicting. She constantly changes accents, languages, mannerisms, and attitudes depending on the situations and people she's around. She is wholly and truly herself and its that, more than anything else, which makes her so alluring. The force of her presence is palpable and singular.

The only flaw in the film is a result of the equipment on which it was shot. Having been shot 10+ years ago the quality of the images are not consistent. The concert shots very crisp and rich, some sequences on the tour more like home video. This is slightly distracting but ultimately, mostly, negligible.

 It's unclear why the film languished in purgatory for a decade but now finally released Grace Jones, now as ever, deserves our reverence.

See It.