It’s not always what the story is but how you tell it.
Piece by Piece, directed by documentarian Morgan Neville, is the story of musician Pharrell Williams. Most probably know Pharrell for his ubiquitous 2013 single, “Happy.” The song was a massive radio and viral hit, so much so that it overshadowed the work Pharrell did with Snoop Dogg (“Drop It Like It’s Hot”), No Doubt (“Hella Good”), Britney Spears (“Boys”), even the endlessly intoxicating “Get Lucky” with French robot duo Daft Punk and the incomparable Nile Rodgers.
That’s quite a lineup of artists and styles, and it’s only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Pharrell’s discography.
So, how best to tell the story of an artist as prolific as Pharrell via image and sound and the collision of style and culture while providing the greatest amount of information in the shortest amount of time? The answer: LEGOs.
The LEGO device was Pharrell’s idea, and it works. It works because Neville’s doc is essentially a linear approach to the recording artist’s life, with Pharrell’s narration bolstered by a plethora of talking head interviews. We’ve seen this approach before — at least without LEGOs. At its best, it’s informative. At its worst, it’s hagiography.
In another non-LEGO world, Piece by Piece would have taken that standard approach, and the result would have landed somewhere closer to the latter than the former. And not without merit: Pharrell, whose artistic presence has been felt in music for over 20 years now, can easily slip into an account of greatest hits as a parade of who’s who passes by. But with LEGOs in place of people, Piece by Piece doesn’t just become watchable; it becomes playful.
Take the concept of a musical beat. Pharrell is almost savant-like when creating hooks, bouncing sounds off each other and creating catchy earworms. He attributes much of that to an early encounter with Stevie Wonder’s “I Wish.” While listening to the song over and over again, Pharrell experienced synesthesia — the ability to see sound waves as visible colors.
Neville uses this conceit to color the LEGO bricks Pharrell works with to create his beats. The individual pieces bounce and glow as Pharrell snaps them together, handing over shimmering, vibrating creations to other musicians who fall under the beat’s hypnotic spell. And since LEGO pieces are interchangeable, Pharrell’s ability to mix and match styles and sounds is given a visual analog.
That all works, but Piece by Piece is not without its faults. The doc falls short mainly due to the wealth of material Neville tries to cover. What starts as an exploration of how one hit opens the door for the next, the documentary quickly becomes a clip show with Pharrell always finding himself at the right place at the right time. Success in any field takes a whole lot of luck and hard work. Pharrell doesn’t shy away from the necessary combination, even if Neville’s documentary wants to.
ON SCREEN: Piece by Piece is now playing in theaters.