If you’re like me, you only know the name “Pharrell Williams” as the guy who does the music for Despicable Me films. I want to say I’m embarrassed by this, but -hey- unless you’re a freaking record producer, we all have blind spots, and they get blinder the older we get.
Here’s what I took from this documentary about the life of Pharrell Williams:
1. Pharrell Williams is a most underrated musician.
2. Pharrell Williams is exceptional at bringing out the best in other talented musicians and vice-versa.
3. I’ve you’ve been listening to music in the 21st century, Pharrell Williams is probably responsible for some tune you love.
Please don’t get me wrong. Pharrell Williams has an impressive résumé and I’m so glad I know it better than I used to. (Do you have any idea how many times Weird Al has either parodied or polka-ed a Pharrell Williams song? I think it’s reached double figures.) That said, the above three phrases could be conveyed in one trailer. Might need a supercut for all the impressive collaborations, but still. One trailer. I don’t think this material quite merited a feature-length documentary.
It seems somebody recognized this very thought. The film claims it was Pharrell Williams himself, which wouldn’t surprise me, but I bet it was at least a group decision. That decision? To animate the life of Pharrell Williams, Lego style (!) Now that is a coup. This made a ho-hum homage to a seriously underrated performer into something special. How special? Hmmmm … special enough for me to like a film I wouldn’t normally like. I suppose that’s not “unleash the Kraken” special, but it is the difference between thumbs down and thumbs up, which isn’t nothing.
Pharrell Williams was a kid from the Atlantis projects in Virginia Beach. He was very much a part of the boardwalk culture one finds on the East Coast, which
is why he named his high school band The Neptunes. The film allowed me to explore a new word, synesthesia, which I probably have heard before but never connected it to anything. Pharrell Williams sees color in music, which is a form of synesthesia. So, at some point, he was always going to have a musical life. That point came when producer Teddy Riley moved to Virginia Beach.
There’s a lot of name-dropping that happens in Piece by Piece; it’s adorable to see the Lego versions of legends like Gwen Stefani and Snoop Dogg. Because Lego is just so universal, there’s an enviable accessibility here; I feel like a documentary of the Holocaust would be palatable if you just set it to Lego. Tasteful? No. Palatable? Yes.
Did you ever hear of The Wrecking Crew? It’s as a group of musicians who -for whatever studio reason- played on hundreds of Top 40 hits in the 1970s. Until recently, their contributions to modern music had gone largely unheralded. I feel like Pharrell Williams is the 21st c. equivalent. He’s not just the guy who wrote that “Because I’m happy!” drivel; he’s produced albums with Justin Timberlake, Madonna, Shakira, and Daft Punk (among many others; I just wanted an eclectic mix here). He even wrote that “I’m Lovin’ It” McDonald’s jingle. It took Lego to get me to appreciate the man. That’s a bit embarrassing, but better late than never.
There once was a man named Pharrell
Who produced music oh so swell
It came time for his story
And to avoid a bore, he
Decided Lego was the best media to tell
Rated PG, 93 Minutes
Director: Morgan Neville
Writer: Morgan Neville, Jason Zeldes, Aaron Wickenden
Genre: The “Everything is Awesome” remix
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: Fans of animated documentaries
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: People who don’t like gimmicks
