“Miles Ahead” is another depressing biopic about a tortured musical genius, and it’s a mess.
Don Cheadle (who directed and co-wrote) plays legendary jazz trumpeter Miles Davis at a time in the late 1970s when he’d stopped recording music. You learn nothing about why Davis was considered so great — instead you get car chases and gun fights. There’s a white Rolling Stone reporter played by Ewan McGregor along for the ride, but he adds nothing to our knowledge of Davis, who comes off as a gangster drug addict who battles his record company. But we never understand why. There are some flashbacks to Davis’ successful years in the fifties and sixties, but not enough.
If you’re not familiar with why Davis was considered great, “Miles Ahead” won’t help. And if you’re a Davis fan, you’ll walk out disappointed. I give it 2/10.