Eric Clapton: A Life in 12 Bars

Name: Eric Clapton: A Life in 12 Bars
Genre: Documentary
Released: November 24, 2017
Duration: 135 min
Rating: 62
Cast: Bobby Whitlock, Charlotte Martin, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Pattie Boyd

2017

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Generally favorable reviews based on 6 Critic Reviews

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Generally favorable reviews based on 8 Ratings

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6.6	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 8 Ratings

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Eric Clapton: Life In 12 Bars

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Movie Details & Credits

Abramorama | Release Date: November 24, 2017 | NR

Starring: Bobby Whitlock, Charlotte Martin, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Pattie Boyd

Summary: From an early age, Eric Clapton was captivated by the blues. As he says of his lifelong fascination: “It was always one man with his guitar versus the world. He was completely alone and had no options other than to just sing and play to ease his pain.” In this unflinching and deeply personal documentary, director Lili Fini Zanuck (OscarFrom an early age, Eric Clapton was captivated by the blues. As he says of his lifelong fascination: “It was always one man with his guitar versus the world. He was completely alone and had no options other than to just sing and play to ease his pain.” In this unflinching and deeply personal documentary, director Lili Fini Zanuck (Oscar winner, Driving Miss Daisy) traces Clapton’s five-decade career as he reflects candidly on how his life experiences were channeled into music. Through an extensive archive of performances and home movies, along with audio interviews from those who knew him best—George Harrison and Steve Winwood, among others—we come away with a deeper sense of what inspired the legendary musician and his unforgettable work. [Abramorama]… Expand

Director: Lili Fini Zanuck

Genre(s): Documentary

Rating: NR

Runtime: 135 min

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Critic Reviews

Noel Murray

Nov 22, 2017

Unlike most rock docs, “Life in 12 Bars” isn’t a look back from a distance. It’s like living through one man’s pain. Read full review

RogerEbert.com Godfrey Cheshire

Feb 9, 2018

The film does a good job conveying the excitement generated by that band as a live act, especially in San Francisco and Los Angeles. But though it produced some remarkable music, Cream’s success was short-lived. Read full review

Dennis Harvey

Nov 21, 2017

As absorbing as much of this material is, the lengthy feature does not feel definitive: It commits the typical music-doc sin of devoting nearly all its time to a celebrated first professional decade, then hastily skimming past all events since. Read full review

Glenn Kenny

Nov 29, 2017

As a musical biography, this comes up short; it plays substantially better as a story of recovery and recovered integrity. Read full review

John DeFore

Nov 21, 2017

The film's title promises a story told with the tidy structure of the blues. (Either that, or it's a bad joke about Clapton's long struggle with alcoholism.) But Life proves weirdly assembled, with counterintuitive emphases. Read full review

Alex Godfrey

Jan 19, 2018

Clapton has led a fascinating life, and is a contradictory and inspiring figure. Save for a few moments, this film just doesn’t serve him well enough. Read full review

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DawdlingPoet

Nov 24, 2021

I very much enjoyed the music side of this documentary - the catchy guitar riffs/solos and so on. It provides a good insight into his musical career, although there were perhaps aspects of his earlier life that we didn't get to learn too much about. Its always nice to hear contributions fromI very much enjoyed the music side of this documentary - the catchy guitar riffs/solos and so on. It provides a good insight into his musical career, although there were perhaps aspects of his earlier life that we didn't get to learn too much about. Its always nice to hear contributions from other, famous musicians or celebrities in general about such a revered person, although it does bother me a bit when such 'sound bites' are played over the end of a live performance shown of a musical number (keep the 2 separate please!). I thought the library/archive footage was interesting and its certainly an insightful watch - one I'd recommend for fans of blues/jazz from the 1950s onwards and of course, suffice to say, the musician himself.… Expand

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