Photo : Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures.

Nick Broomfield’s documentary “The Stones and Brian Jones” tells the sad true story of the man who started the greatest rock n’ roll band of all time, The Rolling Stones.

The Rolling Stones had been a band for over 60 years, but many do not know the story of its original leader. Broomfield’s documentary sheds light on Brian Jones’ story.  It shows the story behind the glitz and glamor that comes with being a rock star.

That being said, everyone knows the stereotype of a rock star or movie star turning bad because of drugs and alcohol. Broomfield did not play into this stereotype, his telling was more sympathetic to Jones’ life. Even though, drugs and alcohol did play into Jones’ life and his eventual downfall. It showed how there was more to the story then just drugs and alcohol.

The documentary runs for about an hour and 37 minutes. What astonished me the most was the amount of archival footage they, the production team, had collected to fill that length of time. On top of all the footage, they had many interviews with people who knew Jones to fill the time.

I personally did not grow up with The Rolling Stones, they were not my generation. I have heard their music before when I was growing up from my family members, so I have heard their music. There are songs that I do love like Paint it Black. I like their music and know their influence on the music industry, but not enough to really be a true fan of them.

Photo : Courtesy of Magnolia Pictures

I feel like that maybe one of the reasons I was disconnected from the documentary. The information they gave was interesting, but not engaging. The documentary was more engaging in the second half than it was the first half. Part of the reason I believe the second half was more engaging is we saw more of the interviewees who spoke in this film.

I wished we saw more of the interviewees when they talked, especially in the first half of the documentary. It gives more of a variety then just the archival footage in my opinion. Though with the amount of interviewees that was in this, it was hard to keep track of every one. I was unsure which interviews, where we only heard, were archival footage or recent interviews.

I did like though that the interviews were in a chronological order, or at least that is what it felt like. People who knew him earlier in his career were there from the start of the film, then as the years of his life went on, more interviews were added to help tell his story. I thought that was very creative and an innovative way to explain his life.

Another thing I really liked was having “the voice” of Jones’, voiced by Freddie Fox, reading out old letters that Jones’ had written. It really gave a more personable and humane side to him. At the end of the day, stars are human too and that really showed that he was just a normal man behind the stardom. Though, that being said, it also showed that he was not a great person.

As I had said earlier, this documentary showed that there was more to Jones’ downfall than just drugs and alcohol. Almost 20 minutes into the documentary, there was an interview with a former girlfriend of Jones’ which really sets the tone of who he was. The interview was also from that time, so it provided insight to that time in his life.

Overall, this documentary showed a real example that getting everything you want may not always be what’s best. It didn’t sugar coat the sad reality of it but it showed the human/imperfect side of a legend.

Magnolia Pictures will release “The Stones and Brian Jones” in theaters on November 17, 2023

Grade: B-

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Here’s the trailer of the film.