David Lewis
Updated 4:21 pm, Thursday, January 24, 2013
The opening scene in "Beware of Mr. Baker" pretty much says it all: The title character - world-renowned rock drummer Ginger Baker - assaults the director with his cane and bloodies his nose.
You would have to search the world far and wide to find a more antisocial documentary subject. The chain-smoking, profanity-spewing Baker comes off as mean-spirited, entitled, grouchy, vile and self-destructive - and those are his good points. The camera doesn't lie: He's a narcissistic, colossal bore.
But this unusual, well-made film is certainly not boring, nor is Baker's life story. Director Jay Bulger has wisely (and bravely) decided that if you can't beat 'em, you join 'em, so he celebrates not only Baker's considerable musical talents but also his unapologetic, misanthropic outbursts. This is warts and all, with the emphasis on the warts.
For those not in the know, the musician rose to fame during the 1960s as a virtuoso drummer in the seminal rock bands Cream and Blind Faith, both of which dissolved in short order. During tours, Baker would demand that he get two whores and a limo - or he wouldn't play.
The film also documents Baker's subsequent stay in Nigeria, where he came under the powerful influence of Fela Kuti's Afrobeat. Along the way, we also see the broken marriages; the disillusioned, ill-treated son; and Baker's residence in South Africa, where he lives with his current wife, who's 40-plus years his junior.
Remarkably, Ginger Baker can still play the drums - it's a wonder he's even still alive - but at 73, he appears not to have a learned a single thing about life. It's kind of funny, but sad, too. Indeed, watching the film sometimes feels like being trapped with a dinner party guest from hell. But it's hard to take your eyes off the train wreck.
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