I can envision two different Oasis documentaries. The first would be called “Wibbling Rivalry,” named for a 14-minute audio recording between a journalist and Noel and Liam Gallagher in which the two bicker incessantly and show their unique brotherly love and hatred for one another. It would focus on how the band broke up simply because these two tossers can’t find a way to get along. It would culminate in a moment a few months ago, when asked if the band would ever reunite, Liam tweeted “FUCK OASIS” and proceeded call Noel a “POTATO.” I would pay good money to see that movie.
The other is “Oasis: Supersonic.” This film takes Oasis at their absolute best and indulges the Gallagher brothers’ massive egos as though they really were the biggest rock band in the world. Director Mat Whitecross ignores the rest of the musical world around them and unironically refers to Oasis as the last pre-Internet phenomenon. That may not be true, but it works because the doc immerses us in the perspective of the Gallagher brothers and how they looked at themselves. It has the same treasure trove of archival and live concert footage as Ron Howard’s recent Beatles doc “Eight Days a Week,” but it is far better at examining what about these songs captured the attention of a generation.
What “Supersonic” understands was that Oasis wrote catchy rock songs and sweeping anthems about being Rock and Roll Stars and getting high in Champagne Supernovas, all in a time when grunge rock was turning dreary and introspective. They came from a working class background and didn’t give a shit about anyone other than themselves.
“I didn’t understand what being Supersonic meant,” one of the band mates said after Noel wrote the eponymous song, “But I’m ready to die for this band right now.”
It also doesn’t hurt that Noel Gallagher may be the single most consistently hilarious and practical interview subject in all of rock music, now or ever. That “Supersonic” has so much of his voice and perspective does the film wonders. “Once I discovered weed and guitars, I got into a different world,” he said. “I’ve arrived. This will fucking do.”
At times, the filmmakers even feel it necessary to dub their thick British accents with subtitles, but that’s because hearing their dialect over and over is priceless. And Whitecross supplements it with countless footage of the band standing on rooftops, wearing sunglasses and glowering into cameras. Meanwhile you’ll pick up a brilliant acoustic version of “Live Forever” or Liam isolated in a recording studio nailing the track to “Champagne Supernova” on his first take. “Supersonic” doesn’t fuck around pretending this band had some special magic or reminding you with fan testimonies or news prattle, it’s just there.
One quick word: “Oasis: Supersonic” takes a lot of cues from Asif Kapadia’s “Amy” from 2015. Kapadia also produces, and while his style of 100 percent archival storytelling seemed fresh and a shakeup to documentaries just a few years ago, they’re already showing their seams, lacking in an immediacy that you get from actual, on-camera documentary filmmaking.
In his book “Your Favorite Band is Killing Me,” Steven Hyden finds a quote from Noel Gallagher wondering that if he had put out his best two albums at the end of his career rather than at the beginning, people would look at it as part of a journey, rather than the band fizzling out. “Supersonic” does overlook the band’s nearly two decades of mediocrity following their first two albums, but it successfully justifies Gallagher’s point of view. There’s a lot to this band that might make for an interesting film, but “Supersonic” is present when it mattered most.
3 ½ stars