One Direction: This is Us (2013)
Certified: U
Duration: 92 minutes
Directed by: Morgan Spurlock
Starring: Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Simon Cowell
KRS release
One Direction: This is Us will appeal to One Direction fans in the same manner as the Justin Bieber and Hannah Montana concert films were must-see events for their respective fans.
However, One Direction’s film is different. It is directed by Morgan Spurlock who had grated corporate big wigs with his film Supersize Me (2004). Here he brings viewers up, close and personal with this boy band and actually makes them look interesting even to non-fans.
The usual concert film mixed with a staged, intimate, all-access look at the members of the band works well. It is aided in no small way by the charming presence of the band members, who surprisingly enough come across as being more than just your run-of-the-mill group – at least, they do not dance.
For those not in the know, One Direction is an Irish and English band that placed third in the hit The X-Factor television show but, under Simon Cowell’s management, have become superstars and teenage heartthrobs with a collective worth of over $25 million.
Only time will tell how durable their success will be and if they manage to keep their fan base when these actually grow up. However, out of all the recent teenage sensations, this is the band that possibly has all the ingredients to keep on going, especially since they seem not to be playing by the rules but out of an inherent sense of nonchalance.
Fans will enjoy the close-up and VIP, first-class seats that a cinema theatre seat can offer to a concert show. However, the real gem is the interspersed footage that gives us an insight into who these teen moppets are and lets us peep under the glossiness of modern pop stardom.
This is even more important in an era where constructed bands and pop groups have become the rule of the day. Seeing that these are actually human underneath all the plasticity of pop stardom is quite a breath of fresh air.
The film also benefits from various cameos, including one by director Martin Scorsese just before the band give a concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City. This particular sequence is quite endearing, especially in the way the band reacts to the presence of the legendary director.
By the end of the film, the band members emerge as much more real and entertaining than anything Bieber has become of late.
The real gem is the interspersed footage that gives us an insight into who these teen moppets are
It’s interesting to see how they can actually look characterful on screen and yet still seem to have little to say, with Harry Styles seemingly being the band’s most eloquent member.
He is well balanced by Zayn Malik who has the most screen presence and, from the film’s showing, also stage presence.
Spurlock keeps things chugging along quite nicely. The live act also brings out the fact that, while the band members really bring out the X-Factor feel, they are quite a far cry from the usual formulaic boy band. In the ill-fitting way they have been brought together, they actually seem to be moving all in one direction.