Tailored For Fans
Documentary films are generally non-fiction pieces of work that educate, inform and help add more context to a situation or person that you otherwise wouldn’t have before watching. With that definition in mind, Look Mom I Can Fly is arguably the worst documentary of the year. It’s entertaining, make no doubt about it, but for those who have no knowledge of this singer and intend to jump into this to find out, Look Mom I Can Fly probably isn’t the best place to start. Travis Scott fans however, will find enough here to like and visually at least, there’s some nice editing and audio effects used to keep things feeling fresh and consistent.
Following the time leading up to the release of his latest album ‘Astroworld’, Look Mom I Can Fly follows the concert tour of Jacques Berman Webster, known on stage as Travis Scott; an enigmatic and wildly popular hip-hop star. Despite knowing his name and hearing a couple of his records while reviewing compilation CDs, I must confess I don’t know a whole lot about this rapper. The documentary itself really doesn’t help shed much light on him either, and aside from learning his concerts are off the wall crazy, I feel none the wiser to who this man is and how he got into the business when the credits rolled at the end.
It’s clear though I’m not the target market and fans of Travis should absolutely love this intimate look at this wildly successful rapper. Seeing him spitting lyrics and placing beats together in the studio are personal highlights for me, as are the slowed shots of the crowd as angry pyros burst into the air at his concerts. Unfortunately there’s a little too much eagerness to showcase these jumping crowds and much of the film is peppered with shaky handheld cameras and waves of euphoria as people lose their minds and jump around to Travis’ music.
I’m a big advocator for music that can bring communities together though and there’s no question that after watching this, Travis’ music absolutely fits this bill. It’s a beautiful reminder of the power of music and this theme fills every facet of this 90 minute documentary. I say documentary, in reality the film plays out much closer to a concert tour and I do think the film may have been better titled and presented in this way. Earlier this year, Beyonce’s Homecoming film managed this much more effectively because of its more accurate marketing and I can’t help but feel Travis could have followed suit.
As I said though, fans of Travis Scott should absolutely check this out, and there’s some really nice behind the scenes footage here that helps add a little more depth to his album. Objectively speaking though, there really isn’t a whole lot here for non-fans and those who’ve never heard of Travis Scott. The film is unashamedly tailored for fans of his work and while that’s absolutely fine, the documentary aspect is lacking, leaving me with little knowledge over just how he got into music and why. Aside from a few tiny snippets of Astroworld, and tying that thematically to the album and film, Look Mom I Can Fly is frustratingly lacking, making it difficult to recommend to anyone other than fans of Travis Scott.
Click Here To Go Back To Our Film Reviews
-
Verdict - 5/10
5/10