By: Gareth Jones

For fans of Jem Cohen, D.I.Y., essay films, underground musicians (Atlanta scene) documentaries

I first became familiar with the incredible work of Jem Cohen when I watched the documentary Instrument, a film about the band Fugazi that he made over a ten year period..  Cohen is a prime example of being the right person at the right time as he grew up in the punk scene in Washington D.C.. In fact, he went to school with the lead singer of Fugazi, Ian Mackaye.   That is a stunning all access yet artistic film, as is Benjamin Smoke, which also was made over a ten year period and is about another punk icon, Benjamin and his band Smoke.  In both cases, Jem Cohen (greatly influenced by Jean Cocteau, Chris Marker, and Jonas Mekas) documents these extremely influential artists with a punk aesthetic, shooting on Super 8, sixteen millimetre, video tape, and most often in black and white.  Cohen perfectly captures Benjamin in all of his challenging beauty. Sadly, these were the last ten years of Benjamin’s life as he died from liver failure due to Hepatitis C in 1999.

Benjamin was born as Robert Dickerson in 1960 in Atlanta, Georgia. He started dressing in drag in his early years and always embraced his queer identity.  He did this with a fervor matched by few.  He moved to New York in the 1970’s during the height of punk, even working in CBGBs cleaning up the “dirtiest place on earth’, according to Benjamin.  These days are recounted through interviews and narration by the gravelly voice of Benjamin.  He was a drug addict, heavy drinker, smoker, and so much more like many artists.  His singing voice is reminiscent of Tom Waits, and for me that is a huge compliment.  Benjamin was a true performance artist as well as a lead singer.  After his stint in New York, he moved back to Atlanta and settled in the Cabbagetown district, becoming a major part of the punk scene in the early eighties as part of the band Opal Foxx Quartet where he performed as Miss Opal Foxx.  In 1992, he became the frontman for the band Smoke, which lasted until near his death.  His singing and lyrics were greatly admired by Patti Smith who is interviewed in the film and reads from her song “Death Singing” which was inspired by the spirit of Benjamin. It is a very powerful scene.

The film weaves back and forth through Benjamin’s life using photos and interviews, but all through the D.I.Y. aesthetic that Cohen is famous for, which confounded some critics when the film came out in 2000.  This meandering approach mirrors the way that Benjamin recounts his own story.  He is a natural storyteller and speaks poetically about his astonishing life.  The musical performances are striking and his lyrics are so haunting.  He has a beat poet approach with a notebook that channeled through his frame and damaged vocal cords strikes a chill throughout the concerts.  It is an often heartbreaking document of an artist as he approaches death.  At one point, Benjamin states that “I am not afraid of dying. I am just not ready to die.”  We are fortunate that Cohen was able to capture so much of his life in this seventy-three minute film. It is only a sampling of the artist, but inspires the viewer to seek out more music and recorded performances.

Like many of his films about artists, Cohen simply wanted to hang out with the artist and document their life and art.  He did this with Elliot Smith, Anne Truit, and with his friends in Fugazi.  Cohen is also famous for his street photography, and that philosophy of just putting the camera down and being ready for anything to document has served his films extremely well.