A linear documentary cocooned in mind-blowing archival footage... [Full review in Spanish]

| Oct 13, 2022

Miles Davis was a complex, 'larger than life' personality, and the documentary makes an admirable effort to summarise his life, it just deserved more than this footnote summary.

| Original Score: 2.5/5 | Sep 3, 2020

A very well-crafted account of the life, influence, and persona of Miles Davis that should please fanatics and new fans alike.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Aug 28, 2020

The documentary Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool, by the African-American director Stanley Nelson, offers an amalgamation of good cinema and formidable music. [Full Review in Spanish]

| Apr 6, 2020

Excellent. [Full review in Spanish]

| Mar 18, 2020

Davis is demystified and deconstructed in this corrective - and excellent - portrait.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Feb 24, 2020

Like many music documentaries, this profile of groundbreaking trumpet player and bandleader Miles Davis feels constrained by its conventional length, and devotes too little time to too many subjects.

| Feb 21, 2020

Those not familiar with Miles Davis will probably take more away than committed fans, although that will hopefully also open up some ears along the way.

| Original Score: 6/10 | Feb 6, 2020

He may have been a difficult, off-putting person in real life - okay, he DEFINITELY was - but when he played, his music touched something deep and elemental inside the listener. As one interviewee puts it, "I want to feel the way Miles sounds."

| Original Score: 3/4 | Oct 28, 2019

A well-made account of both the man's achievements and his jerkiness.

| Original Score: B+ | Oct 23, 2019

Like Davis' own life, Nelson's film follows a predictable pattern - which seems a little sad given the dynamic style of Davis' music. But that may not matter for those happy to just get lost in the atmosphere of Miles Davis' music.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Oct 18, 2019

Though not as groundbreaking as its subject, the expansive documentary showcases the jazz icon's innovative, ever-changing musical style while at least acknowledging the damage his personal demons wrought...

| Original Score: 2.5/4 | Oct 17, 2019

This exceptional two-hour take covers a whole lot of ground and gives the music center stage, as it should.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Oct 6, 2019

A perfectly polished work that will serve as a solid introductory primer for those unfamiliar with his history while offering up enough juicy bits of performance footage to satisfy fans.

| Oct 4, 2019

One really would rather listen to the music, instead of hearing the same talking points about it.

| Original Score: 2/4 | Oct 4, 2019

Nelson tells Davis' warts and all story with plenty of room for remarkable bits of information, scholarly comments from an assortment of names and faces, and historical rhythms of Bebop that simply might drive jazz devotees to the brink in a good way.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Sep 28, 2019

The result, for the most part, is pleasant and informative, if not particularly inspiring or revelatory. But now and then, the music and images can't help but break through.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Sep 28, 2019

Miles Davis is a constantly evolving musical genius in Stanley Nelson's "Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool. "

| Original Score: A- | Sep 27, 2019

Stanley Nelson's film shoves entire generations of content into its runtime.

| Original Score: B | Sep 26, 2019

A primer...proves most valuable by gathering a number of Miles' friends, lovers, musical collaborators, admirers, and musicologists...to share their recollections and perspectives on Davis, his musicality, and his personality.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Sep 25, 2019