On December 31, 2024, Netflix releases 'Avicii - I'm Tim', which has earned rave reviews from critics at the time of this writing. In the film, "Before there was Avicii, there was just Tim. For the first time through his own words, witness the journey of a shy but prodigious musical talent who would soon become one of the defining artists of his generation." But what did the critics say?
Will Bjarnar of Next Best Picture says, "Charting the life and accomplishments of Tim Bergling – the Swedish DJ known to anyone who has listened to music in the last 10-plus years as Avicii – Burman’s film does, indeed, follow the tired cradle-to-grave formula that has dulled projects of a similar ilk in the recent past (Bergling tragically took his own life in 2018 at the age of 28). But what this documentary possesses that hundreds of others lack is a rare sense of soul. It doesn’t rely on sit-down interviews with journalists who have deemed themselves the foremost authorities on an artist’s career, instead placing an emphasis on industry personalities and, especially, close friends of Bergling, with the two often intersecting. More than any other, to the film’s ultimate credit, we hear from Bergling himself. It’s evident that Burman and co. were working with Avicii’s team on a documentary of sorts for years before his death, but “I’m Tim” employs a great deal of archival behind-the-scenes footage of Bergling’s rise that was clearly filmed in an effort, from the moment he pieced together the beat to his first hit, “Levels,” to the moment something clicked within him leading to a change in his sound and taste. We see Bergling working with artists like Chris Martin – he produced Coldplay’s “A Sky Full of Stars” – Dan Tyminski, who provided the vocals for “Hey Brother,” and Aloe Blacc, who sings on “SOS” and Avicii’s biggest sensation, “Wake Me Up.” This footage is intercut with interviews with said artists, as well as conversations with some of Bergling’s closer personal confidants, like his longtime manager Arash “Ash” Pournouri and the nightclub promoter Jesse Waits, who became a brother to Bergling over the course of their years long friendship." Adding, "Most prominently and notably, we hear Bergling discussing his complicated relationship with fame and his struggles with mental health. Almost always heard in voiceover, he notes that he never felt like much of an artist or producer but a person “filled with music.” You can see that mentality in his early performances, in particular; Bergling, often donning an Atlanta Braves or Oakland Athletics cap because of the “A” logos they featured on the front, typically wore plaid button-ups one might pull off the clearance rack at Kohl’s while performing at EDM (electronic dance music) festivals like Miami’s heralded Ultra. While his fans donned skin-tight neon digs, the artist known as Avicii appeared as though he was about to accept an academic excellence award at his high school. Such habits make it clear that Avicii was merely a mask for the man named Tim, the artist serving as an alternate personality, not quite something he’d consider an escape. A friend recalls that “Tim and Avicii weren’t really getting along for a long time,” almost like the DJ within was a Venom-esque syndicate itching to control the man’s body and soul. Tim himself says, “I didn’t like [having] to be Avicii and then [having] to be Tim… Then I didn’t even enjoy making music.” It’s heartbreaking, an internal sparring not at all worthy of chalking up to the price of fame."
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| Photo by Marcela Laskoski on Unsplash |
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