There are two indomitable creative forces at work in Justin Timberlake + the Tennessee Kids, a concert documentary capturing the final performance of Timberlake’s 2015 world tour. The first, of course, is Timberlake himself, who comes across as the world’s most congenial machine. Powering through a set of singing, dancing, and various instrument-playing—not to mention conducting both his extended backup band and an entire stadium of fans—the man hardly pauses for a rest, and most importantly makes you believe he doesn’t want to. The second force is director Jonathan Demme, returning to the genre he helped define with 1984’s Stop Making Sense, which documented a performance by The Talking Heads. Here, working with cinematographer Declan Quinn, Demme wisely knows when to let the stage show itself do the work (particularly when it comes to the trippy laser effects) and when to move in for more candid, intimate moments. My favorite among the latter is the floating, relaxed camerawork during “Drink You Away,” which movies us back and forth among the many backup singers as they belt away at the song, wringing its pop simplicity for every bit of communal blues they can. It takes nothing away from Timberlake’s prowess to say that Demme, with this doc, does something similar.
