Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary (2016) User Reviews

Train your sights on Trane

[blitzebill · 8/10 · 13 November 2017]

Pretty good doc on John Coltrane.

Although some of the talking heads like former President Clinton and Carlos Santana are not useful and only distract from the subject. Clinton's only there cause he thinks he knows how to play the sax.

My biggest beef is with the section on 1965. Coltrane did not just up and invent a new avant-garde style. That came from contemporaries like Ornette Coleman (who is not even mentioned, and created what was known as "Free Jazz.") and some of the wild cats like Sun Ra and Rahsaan Roland Kirk (again none of them mentioned).

Coltrane surely heard those cats and was influenced by them. But the film fails to deliver that critical content.

"His sound is the sound of life, and the sound of love". - Carlos Santana on John Coltrane

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 16 September 2017]

It's a shame no footage exists of John Coltrane ever giving an interview, as that would have been a more than welcome addition to this documentary. The stats on his credits page here on IMDb doesn't even list any variety show appearances, unusual in that many of his peers would have taken the occasion for that type of exposure. As it is, actor Denzel Washington narrates what would have been Coltrane's spoken words throughout the film, taking the viewer from his early childhood to the zenith of his musical career, cut short by liver cancer at the age of forty in 1967.

Offering their personal reflections and perspectives on the life and music of Coltrane are folks like Carlos Santana, Cornel West, Wynton Marsalis and John Densmore, drummer for The Doors. Densmore relates a humorous story of the time he went to a performance by Coltrane and retreated to the Men's Room numerous times because it was right next to the musician's dressing room. A chance encounter at one point left Densmore speechless and a quizzical look on Coltrane's face.

Members of Coltrane's family included sons Ravi and Oran, and stepdaughter Antonia Andrews who appeared quite emotional in recounting her experiences with her father. As a testament to Coltrane's global fame as a celebrated jazz musician, Japanese memorabilia collector Yasuhiro Fujioka displayed part of his massive collection of Coltrane music and press clippings.

Fans of Coltrane will undoubtedly find the documentary revealing to the extreme relative to his early heroin addiction and the spiritual awakening that occurred in 1957 after being fired from the Miles Davis Quintet for his drug use. The rest of his life became a vehicle of thanking God for his boundless talent and musical expression. Just lately I've been listening to Coltrane's music myself without attempting to analyze it the way professional musicians and historians do. In that regard, I must say that I'd have to concur with Professor Cornel West who stated at one point that at times, he's not prepared to grasp what the great Coltrane was doing with his music.

Great Documentary.

[chiaracalo · 8/10 · 7 January 2019]

Beautiful portrait of John Coltrane. Written and directed by John Scheinfeld and released in 2017, this documentary describes Coltrane's life from childhood until his premature death, at age 40. It also deals with Trane's heroin and alcohol addictions, and how he rebounded by sheer willpower. His life was spared and his music improved. The documentary features many interviews of friends, fans and family members. Wonderful pictures and exclusive footage are shown. Denzel Washington lends his voice reading excerpts from interviews.

Jazz fans will enjoy this documentary, very informative.

Length: 1hr 39min

For 'Trane

[GManfred · 21 April 2017]

"Chasing Trane" is as comprehensive as a documentary about the short life of John Coltrane can get. Apart from his recordings, precious little exists about the life and career of arguably the best saxophone player who ever lived. This documentary traces his upbringing in the Jim Crow South to the pinnacle of his career - at which point he died of liver cancer. He was 40.

The filmmakers used still shots coupled with interviews with his surviving friends, family members and admirers. He never gave an interview, and when he is quoted the voice-over is Denzel Washington. Those interviewed include Cornel West, best friend Sonny Rollins, his children and -surprise- saxophonist Bill Clinton. Testimony is given regarding his musical perspective and the impact music had on his life and the lives of others. It is extremely illuminating and insightful.

I could go on and on, and suffice it to say the film is never slow or dull. It is a fast 99 minutes and it is terrific. If you are a fan of his you should go and see it. You have to.

sound of life

[dromasca · 7/10 · 17 March 2018]

A revolution took place by the mid of the 20th century in American and world music. Jazz, which was until then music for mostly dance and mass entertainment split its ways into several distinct currents, giving birth to rock and roll, to soul, to rhythm and blues. Yes, I know this presentation is quite a simplistic view, but at that time, while other genres were taking up in entertainment dominating the hit parades, radio programs and TV shows, jazz itself evolved to a much more sophisticated form of expression. A bunch of post-WWII jazz musicians changed and developed the sound of jazz making and blew up its boundaries. Among them, together with Charlie Parker and Miles Davies, one of the most important was John Coltrane. "Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary" is dedicated to his life, music and legacy. These exceptional artists toured the world and made of jazz a universal art and one of the greatest contributions of America to the culture of the world.

The documentary written and directed by John Scheinfeld is built on a pattern used by many musical documentary films. It follows closely the life and biography of the artists, uses images filmed and recorded in concerts to illustrate his music, gathers testimonies from family, from jazz fans and experts, from the artists who worked with Coltrane and who came later and were influenced by him. Family members tell about the man he was (moving testimonies by his two step-daughters) and his personal life not avoiding the crisis related to drugs and faith. Musicians who played with him or who came after him talk about his music, and this was the part I valued most (including people like Sonny Rollins, Wynton Marsalis, McCoy Tyner, John Densmore, Carlos Santana). An interesting segments speaks about his tour to Japan (his last) and the special relationship he had with this country. Coltrane seems to not have left any filmed interview, or the makers of this film did not have access to it, but he left quite a lot of memorable quotes and written stories about his life and music, which are read by Denzel Washington. The actor (who does not appear in the film) bears actually an amazing physical resemblance with Coltrane, so if there ever (or soon) will be a feature film about him, he is the best candidate for the lead role. It is music however that speaks best, and if you have the chance to watch this film and listen to the soundtrack in a cinema with good audio conditions, it will be a win. It's not a ground-shaking documentary film, but it's a complete and respectful homage to one of the greatest musicians in history, a man who in a rather short life and career changed the course of music taking it into new territories.

Chasing inspiration

[xWRL · 10/10 · 7 November 2017]

As you'd expect, this documentary offers a close-up view of the different phases of the life of John Coltrane through lots of family photos and footage of his performing and through the remembrances of family and friends who loved and understood him.

But what's really special is that the mix of interviews, from Sonny Rawlins to Wynton Marsalis, from Cornel West to Bill Clinton, captures how deeply Coltrane's life and art inspired people who happen to be both famous and highly articulate about how Coltrane affected them.

If you're not familiar with Coltrane's music, this may be the best introduction you'll find. If you are familiar, you're still likely to learn something new, because the documtary carefully traces Coltrane's musical development. But its greatest strength is how movingly people describe their experiences of Coltrane.

A LOVE SUPREME...!

[masonfisk · 6/10 · 30 July 2018]

A standard doc on jazz great John Coltrane that pretty much covers what it can since the man died relatively young & he had so much more to give us but what he did give us is awe-inspiring. We have a lot of heavy talent on screen waxing nostalgic about Coltrane from Dr. Cornel West, former president Bill Clinton, Sonny Rollins & of all people Denzel Washington voicing Coltrane's words but the film still has an annoying been there, done that feel which it shouldn't given the subject matter. Not bad but could be better.

Not sure what else there is to say!

[jellopuke · 9/10 · 20 November 2017]

Has to be the definitive look at Coltrane with a focus on the evolution and impact of his style and playing and songs. Not sure it's going to convince a non-jazz fan, but the diverse interviews certainly try their hardest. Great starting point for someone to get into the music and I'm sure a decent encapsulation for someone who is already a super fan. Certainly made me want to go back and revisit some albums that I haven't listened to in a while.

An orthodox documentary about an extraordinary talent

[paul2001sw-1 · 7/10 · 16 April 2022]

John Coltrane apprenticed with all the jazz greats; developed but recovered from a heroin addiction; pioneered a style all of his own; and died tragically young, aged just 40, of liver cancer. We might think of musicians as party animals but by all accounts in this film, Coltrane was a fundamentally serious person, and a genius. The film is a fairly typical documentary, reverential in tone, with lots of his music to listen to. Also there are a lot of talking heads, and while Bill Clinton is not unintelligent in his comments, I'm not sure he's really among the best qualified people to give us insight. What's missing is any sort of musical analysis: we get to hear the man in action, but if you wanted to understand how his work fitted into, and transcended, the jazz traditon, or why it sounded so revolutionary when first released, you might be disappointed. Banal comments likening what Coltrane did on the saxaphone to what Hendrix did on the electric guitar don't really explain either. But the programme does succeed in making you like the man: unlike fellow genius Miles Davis, he seems to have been a nice person, which is quite unusual for someone so talented.

Tribute to a genius

[RolyRoly · 9/10 · 26 January 2018]

We live in horribly divisive times. Racially, politically, culturally, economically, Americans have rarely been more divided. Coltrane was a uniting force in America, a man who struggled with his own demons and emerged to deliver a message of hope and redemption - all through the most sublime music -a message that we would do well to remember today.

This film is a wonderful tribute to one of our greatest artists. When most of us were content to bask in his artistry, Coltrane was already 10 miles down the road to some other achievement.

We use the word genius too liberally, but Trane was a genius.

a Great film on Trane

[buff87 · 10/10 · 1 May 2017]

I remember the day which Trane passed in summer of 1967 as a moment of monumental loss; we say this bio of him Sunday and loved it very much. The music and the interviews are just beyond what I expected and despite being a lifelong fan of Trane I learned a lot. This is a must see for anyone who loves modern music at its most majestic and transcendental.

Informative yet shallow

[micahth · 4/10 · 23 November 2017]

The state of knowledge about jazz is so abysmal that a film like this can simultaneously be informative and shallow. It can tell the non-initiated quite a lot of biographical details, as this film does adeptly with saxophonist John Coltrane, but still not give more than cursory attention to Coltrane's greatest accomplishment, his music.

Despite the inclusion of musicians like Reggie Workman and critics like Ben Ratliff, very little time is spent describing the details of Coltrane's music as it relates to the context of jazz. Sure, Cornel West talks about how the music moves him in his trademark wonderfully loquacious manner and Bill Clinton says the same in the way that he talks, but it was all telling, not showing. The film really did not explain how Coltrane modified bop with denser and faster playing. Or how Coltrane took the, already brilliant, already out there, free jazz work from the likes of Ornette Coleman and Sun Ra and made it his chaotic yet soulful yet violent own.

Perhaps this would have gone over the head of the average viewer, but at least it would have been an attempt to explain what made Coltrane notable.

A must-see

[joelmp · 9/10 · 12 September 2018]

A must-see for anyone who likes jazz, or just musical history of the fifties and sixties. The interviews are a cut above, especially by Bennie Golson, Jimmy Heath, the incomparable Sonny Rollins, Coltrane's first daughter, and even, believe it or not, Bill Clinton. The music is superb, somehow finding the time to have excerts from Coltrane's most transcendent work -- Giant Steps, Naima, Alabama, My Favorite Things, All Blues and more. (Only one of my favorites is missing - Afro-Blue.) Intelligent, coherent -- a great introduction to Coltrane if you don't know him, and a wonderful appreciation for those of us who do. Even the animations are beautiful. The film got nit-picked by critics -- "not enough music", "too conventional", etc. But the film intelligently depicts the key moments in his life, sets it in the historical context of his times both musically and politically, all the while celebrating his genius. See it for yourself.

Trane Time

[ramlmmjem · 9/10 · 3 January 2024]

An excellent and very watchable overview of the saxophone angel known as John Coltrane. From his early beginnings as a musician while serving in the Armed Forces, through his apprenticeship with the genius that was Dizzy Gillespie, and then on to his work with Miles Davies before his recording of his 'spiritual' album 'Love Supreme', this film interweaves the man, his music and his family life in an entertaining and thoughtful way. The feelings of those musicians he worked with (or who were simply influenced in some way by him) are palpable and evidence his genius and force of personality. For a man who died at 40 (I'd known he died young but not that young), Trane packed a lot in and left us with a fabulous catalogue of music. This film is well-worth watching whether or not you are familiar with Coltrane's music. Highly recommended.

10 stars, because this legend, named John Coltrane was ( and still is ) PHENOMENAL. One of a kind. MUST BE HEARD....

[imseeg · 10/10 · 18 February 2022]

10 stars, merely to describe the importance of this unique and legendary saxophone player, who created some of the most wonderfully, gorgeous and phenomenal sounds in jazz history!

JOHN COLTRANE is the MAN. History should honor him. Youngsters unfamiliar with any sounds from this era in which jazz ruled the sonic waves during the fifties and sixties, should encounter and immerse themselves FULLY with this soulful SPIRIT of jazz.

I came to know of him through Miles Davis. No matter which way one gets to know of John Coltrane though, it will be the right way :)

Denzel Washington is narrating this documentary, with many former jazz collegues and family members remembering John Coltrane's journey to becoming one of THE most important saxophone players having to have walked this very earth.

Not having heard John Coltrane play jazz, is equal to not having lived fully! That is, if you are into jazz or into music. Full stop.

A Love Supreme

[Screen_O_Genic · 9/10 · 20 March 2023]

A simple and lively tribute to the legendary jazzman, "Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary" charts the life and storied career of one of the giants of Popular Music. Highlighting Coltrane's tale from his difficult childhood to his late bloomer ascent in music the documentary depicts with energy and verve the man's association and works with fellow luminaries Charlie Parker and Miles Davis and to his own unique and innovative career. Priceless images and footage amplify the legend with interviews of the man's family, musical peers, biographers, critics and celebrity fans. With Denzel Washington narrating Coltrane's words Carlos Santana, John Densmore, Sonny Rollins, Bill Clinton (!) and others share their interesting tributes showing Coltrane's profound impact on those influenced by him. An unhinged Cornel West offers some amusing comic relief. Strangely Coltrane's own voice is not used in the flick and his canonization as a saint by the African church isn't discussed. Regardless of what the director thought of this it is a part of the man's legacy and should have been touched on. The film augments the legend and the myth with the background and the times the man lived in that shaped his character and outlook inspiring his one of a kind art. While nothing exemplary this colorful memorial to one of the musical titans of the 20th-Century is one Jazz and music fans should not miss.