''Kurt & Courtney'' is a 1998 British

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

Nick Broomfield Nicholas Broomfield (born 1948) is an English documentary film director. His self-reflective style has been regarded as influential to many later filmmakers. In the early 21st century, he began to use non-actors in scripted works, which he call ...

investigating the circumstances surrounding the

death of Kurt Cobain On April 8, 1994, Kurt Cobain, the lead singer and guitarist of the American rock band Nirvana (band), Nirvana, was found dead at his home on Lake Washington Boulevard in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington. Forensic investigators and a coro ...

, and allegations of

Courtney Love Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, Love has had a career spanning four decades. She rose to promi ...

's involvement in it.

Synopsis

The documentary begins as an investigation of the circumstances surrounding Cobain's death and the theories which sprung up afterwards. Cobain was legally declared to have committed suicide but has been alleged by some, to have been

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

ed, in some allegations at Courtney Love's instigation. As Broomfield investigates the claims surrounding Cobain's death, his emphasis moves from the murder theories and onto an investigation of Love herself, including an accusation that she supports the suppression of

free speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recognise ...

, and her fame after Cobain's death. The film was due to play the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

but Love threatened to sue the festival's organizers if they screened the film. Broomfield removed all of Nirvana's music, and replaced it with music from bands mainly from the Seattle area. However, when shown on the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

, the film contained

Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...

's 1991 performance of "

Smells Like Teen Spirit "Smells Like Teen Spirit" is a song by the American rock band Nirvana. It is the opening track and lead single from the band's second album, '' Nevermind'' (1991), released on DGC Records. Having sold over 13 million units worldwide, it i ...

" from ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

''. While the initial focus of the film was to explore the possible murder of Cobain, Courtney Love's refusal to license any of Cobain's music, and her unwillingness to speak on camera was used by Broomfield as evidence of her censorship of free speech. The film begins with a recap of Cobain's death and the media coverage which followed. Broomfield then interviews Cobain's aunt Mary who helped his love for music when he was a child. This interview is followed up with several from friends and schoolteachers who knew Cobain when he was growing up before moving onto Cobain's relationship with Courtney Love. After establishing the background the film moves on to detail the accusations that Cobain was murdered. Broomfield interviews Tom Grant, a

private investigator A private investigator (often abbreviated to PI; also known as a private detective, an inquiry agent or informally a wikt:private eye, private eye) is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. ...

who has alleged that Love may have conspired to kill her husband, and wants the case re-opened by the Seattle Police Department. Grant was hired by Love, but thinks it was just so people would believe that she was innocent. Hank Harrison, Courtney Love's father, is interviewed, and states he also believes that Cobain may have been killed in a conspiracy organised by Love. He has written two books about Cobain's death. The film also includes interviews with Portland drug culture celeb and former stripper, Amy Squier, about her explicit and personal knowledge of Kurt and Courtney's heroin use, and an interview with

The Mentors The Mentors are an American heavy metal band, known for their deliberate shock rock lyrics. Originally formed in Seattle, Washington in May 1976, they relocated to Los Angeles, California in 1979. The band garnered attention both from noted h ...

singer

El Duce Eldon Wayne Hoke (March 23, 1958 – April 19, 1997), nicknamed El Duce, was an American musician best known as the drummer and lead singer of the shock rock band the Mentors, as well as other acts, including Chinas Comidas and the Scre ...

(real name Eldon Wayne Hoke), who claimed that Love offered him $50,000 to kill Cobain. El Duce claimed in the film that he knew who killed Cobain, but said he would "let the FBI catch him." Eight days after that interview was filmed, El Duce was killed when he was hit by a train. Broomfield also shows an interview with Al Bowman, a minor Hollywood promoter, along with Norm Lubow (in disguise and using the alias "Jack Briggs"). Both introduced Broomfield to Eldon Hoke. The film also includes an interview with musician and friend of Cobain's Dylan Carlson, who had bought the shotgun that Cobain eventually used to kill himself. Broomfield eventually moves away from the alleged conspiracy and the film turns into an investigation of Courtney Love's alleged suppression of free speech. Included in the film are phone calls from MTV saying that they were pulling out of financing the film (which was completed thanks to financing from private investors and the

), due to presumed pressure from Love. A threatening phone message from Love to Lynn Hirschberg is played which was made after Hirschberg had written an article in '' Vanity Fair'' stating that Love had used

heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...

while pregnant with daughter

Frances Bean Cobain Frances Bean Cobain (born August 18, 1992) is an American visual artist and model. She is the only child of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain and Hole frontwoman Courtney Love. She controls the publicity rights to her father's name and image. Early ...

. Broomfield also explains how Love tried to attack Hirschberg at the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

using

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American filmmaker, actor, and author. Quentin Tarantino filmography, His films are characterized by graphic violence, extended dialogue often featuring much profanity, and references to ...

's Oscar. There is also an interview with journalist

Victoria Clarke Victoria "Torie" Clarke (born May 18, 1959) is an American communications consultant who has served in several private sector positions and in three Republican presidential administrations, most notably as the Assistant Secretary of Defense fo ...

(who wrote the book '' Nirvana: Flower Sniffin', Kitty Pettin', Baby Kissin' Corporate Rock Whores'' with Britt Collins) about how Love and Cobain had threatened her while doing research for her book on Cobain and Nirvana. Broomfield includes clips in the film of the threats made by Cobain, and Clarke details the story of Love assaulting her by attacking her with a glass and dragging her along the floor by her hair. The film concludes with Broomfield taking the stage at an

ACLU The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. ...

meeting (where Love is a guest speaker) to publicly question Love about her attempts to suppress free speech and the irony of her representing the ACLU. He is pulled from the stage by

Danny Goldberg Gold Mountain Records was a record label based in New York. It was distributed by A&M Records between 1983 and 1985. After 1985, the distributor was MCA Records. History In 1985, Danny Goldberg became the label's president. Goldberg founded an an ...

, Cobain's former manager.

Music

Because of Love's refusal to license Nirvana's music for the project, Nick Broomfield was forced to use various other bands from the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (PNW; ) is a geographic region in Western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common ...

. Notable amongst these were Zeke,

the Dwarves The Dwarves are an American punk rock band formed in Chicago, Illinois and based in San Francisco, California as of 2009.Gentile, John (2009)Interview: Blag Dahlia of the Dwarves", ''The A.V. Club'', April 13, 2009, retrieved February 7, 2010 ...

, Rozz Rezabek and the Theater of Sheep, and

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

Reception

Riding a wave of controversy, ''Kurt & Courtney'' opened in one North American theatre on 27 February 1998, where it grossed $16,835 in its opening weekend. The film's final $668,228 gross was respectable considering the film's limited release (only 12 theatres at its widest point), independent distribution, documentary nature, and mixed reviews. In a review by

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

, he said that "Broomfield's film opens with Love as a suspect, only to decide she was probably not involved, and the movie ends in murky speculation without drawing any conclusions". A review in the newspaper '' Providence Phoenix'' stated that "All in all there's nothing here to persuade even the most zealous Marcia Clark disciple to open a case against Courtney, but plenty of fodder for the kind of fascinating films Broomfield likes to make". The second edition of the Ian Halperin and Max Wallace book '' Who Killed Kurt Cobain?'', which was released in 2000, details how Love tried to stop its original 1998 publication as well as trying to stop the 1998 documentary film, ''Kurt & Courtney'', from being released.

Charts

References

External links