Title: “Control”

Release date: In theaters Oct. 10, 2007; on streaming and VOD services Aug. 10, 2016

Directed by: Anton Corbijn

Written by: Matt Greenhaigh

Starring: Sam Riley, Samantha Morton, Craig Parkinson, Alexandra Maria Lara, Joe Anderson, James Anthony Pearson, Toby Kebbell, Harry Treadway, Andrew Sheridan, Robert Shelly

Genre: Music biopic

Run time: 2 hours, 1 minute

Rated: PG-13

Where I saw it: On my laptop, on a Wednesday night while lying in my bathtub, purchased from YouTube for $9.99 plus tax

What it’s about: The British post-punk band Joy Division seems poised for worldwide fame in the late 1970s when frontman Ian Curtis (Riley) is diagnosed with epilepsy, and his life spirals out of control.

What I liked about it: Rarely has a story begged for use of a gray, nearly monochromatic movie treatment like that of Ian Curtis, a young man who seemed mired in his own grayness even as his band was earning critical acclaim and public popularity, and even after he had married a kind and loving wife (Morton as Debbie) and fathered a child with her, and even after he had won the heart of a carefree Belgian journalist (Lara as Annik Honore) and had an affair with her. Curtis seemed incapable of returning their love or loving himself, especially after he was stricken with epilepsy and was left to chase the right mix of medications that would curb his increasingly frequent and violent seizures without leaving him too numb to write songs. Curtis’ cautionary tale is a familiar one even to those who might not have heard of Joy Division, who put out just two full-length albums. A combination of poor decisions, a worsening health condition, an impending divorce from Debbie and severe depression proved too much for Curtis, who hung himself on an indoor clothesline on May 18, 1980, on the eve of his band leaving for its first U.S. tour. He was just 23. … The film is mostly the story of Ian and Debbie, and Riley and Morton carry the movie’s dramatic moments. Curtis could not have been easy to play; he wasn’t long on charisma. Riley accurately captures Curtis’ mannerisms, especially on stage, when Curtis would seem buried within himself at the microphone but would break into dance that was part military march, part epileptic seizure. Both Riley and Morton compellingly convey the innocence of a young couple (both were 16 when they married) whose hope for a better life is rail thin. … All of Joy Division’s biggest songs (“No Love Lost,” “She’s Lost Control,” “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” a hit when the remaining band members formed New Order) are here, with the actors doing a plausible job of portraying a group. The highlight is Joy Division’s seminal performance of the Doors-like “Transmission” on the BBC2 program “Something Else” on Sept. 15, 1979, with Curtis sing/screaming “dance, dance, dance, dance, dance to the radio” as if it were an act of a desperate man. And it was.

What I didn’t like about it: Except for “Transmission,” Joy Division’s songs don’t play in their entirety, giving way to the drama each time, which grows tiresome after a while. … The film doesn’t delve deeply into Curtis’ persona and what shaped him, perhaps because such an exercise might have proven futile. Curtis likely didn’t understand himself. The best he could do is leave us clues through his songs.

Who it should appeal to: Fans of circa 1977-81 British post-punk music, those who like sad stories.

My score: 81 out of 100.