Two of my all-time favorite artists will be given the documentary movie treatment this year! British progressive rock legends King Crimson and heavy metal icon Ronnie James Dio will have long awaited documentaries at 2022’s SXSW festival in Austin, Texas.
In the Court of the Crimson King, a film by Toby Amies comes in behind The Music is Our Friend tour which had been delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In the press release for In the Court of the Crimson King, Subtitled King Crimson at 50, the documentary looks to tell the definitive story of the legendarily unclassifiable musical ensemble helmed by Fripp, the musical genius/sane-man-in-the-asylum who’s forged an indelible place in music history along the way.
The synopsis:
What began as a traditional documentary about the legendary band King Crimson as it turned 50, mutated into an exploration of time, death, family, and the transcendent power of music to change lives; but with jokes.
In the Court of the Crimson King is a dark, comic film for anyone who wonders whether it is worth sacrificing everything for just a single moment of transcendence. It explores the unique creative environment of King Crimson, one in which freedom and responsibility conspire to place extraordinary demands on the band’s members-only alleviated by the applause of an audience whose adoration threatens to make their lives even harder. It’s a rewarding and perilous space in which the extraordinary is possible, nothing is certain, and not everyone survives intact.
In the Court of the Crimson King will be showing on March 14 at the Alamo Lamar and on March 18 at the ZACH Theater.
Event Details: https://schedule.sxsw.com/2022/films/2053971
Dio: Dreamers Never Die, a Ronnie James Dio documentary film by Don Argott and Demian Fenton, will also be making its long-awaited debut at SXSW this year on March 17 at the Paramount Theater and ONLINE ONLY on March 18 to North American audiences.
From the press release, Dio: Dreamers Never Die is “… the first documentary about Dio to be fully authorized by the artist’s estate. According to the film’s official description, it “delves deep into his incredible rise from ’50s doo-wop crooner to his early classic rock days in Ritchie Blackmore’s RAINBOW, to replacing the iconic lead singer Ozzy Osbourne in BLACK SABBATH, to finally cement his legend with DIO. Ronnie’s biography is completely unique to the tired sex, drugs and rock and roll clichés. The film is about perseverance, dreams and the power to believe in yourself.”
Wendy Dio recently told Argentinian journalist Lucas Gordon, “I saw the first cut of it. It was very emotional. It’s very different from [Dio’s autobiography]. ‘Cause the book finishes in 1986, with Ronnie playing Madison Square Garden. But the documentary goes all the way through his life till the end. And it was very emotional. I was watching it with my publicist and a person from BMG, who are funding the documentary. And we all cried. It was very emotional. But it’s really interesting and really good. Rob Halford is great in it, talking about stories. Lita Ford [and] Jack Black [are also in it]. I’m very pleased with it.”
Event Details: https://schedule.sxsw.com/2022/films/2054176
I can’t think of two more deserving acts to be immortalized with what I hope will be stellar pieces of work. With nearly a century’s worth of art combined, Dio and King Crimson’s stories will finally be told, and I can only hope that they will be told well. Unfortunately, I was so disappointed with Ronnie James Dio’s autobiography being finished by his wife/manager Wendy Dio. I almost wish it wouldn’t have come out but let’s hope that this documentary will finally tell the story as it truly deserves to be told.
At the time of this article, there was no trailer released yet for Dio: Dreamers Never Die
About The Author
