Edwyn Collins Archives - Sean Kelly On Movies

In 2005, Scottish rock musician Edwyn Collins, best known for his 1994 hit "A Girl Like You," suffered a serious stroke. After waking up, Collins was only able to utter the phrases “Grace Maxwell” (his wife) and “The Possibilities are Endless.” The Possibilities Are Endless places the audience into Collins’ mind as he recovers from his stroke and strives to return to a normal life and music career. Within the first five minutes, it quickly becomes apparent that The Possibilities Are Endless isn’t going to be your average documentary. After opening with a clip of a younger Collins performing on Late Night with Conan O'Brien, the film suddenly blacks out and switches to a series of abstract imagery and Collins narrating his thoughts. It is definitely not what I was expecting with this film and to say that this imagery was disorienting is an understatement. The film is probably a third finished by the time Edwyn Collins appears on screen for the first time and another third passes before the film starts to seem like a “normal” documentary. The Possibilities Are Endless is undoubtedly an interesting way to use the documentary medium to create what is essentially a semi-experimental art film. The film is probably not going to be for everyone and I admit to getting bored with all the abstractness of the film. However, it is definitely one of the more unique documentaries I have seen at this year’s Hot Docs. 7 | FAIR Screenings: Sat, May 3, 7:30 PM – Royal Cinema