A film by Jake Meginsky
Music Documentary – 94 Minutes – Color – English/USA 2018
Milford Graves Full Mantis patiently draws the viewer through world-renowned jazz percussionist Milford Graves’ kaleidoscopic creative process. In his lush garden, blocks from his childhood home in the housing projects of South Jamaica, Queens, Graves tells stories of struggle and survival, ruminates on the essence of ‘swing’, and listens to the sound of his heart. The film weaves blistering performance footage from Europe, Japan, and the U.S. with an intimate glimpse into the artist’s singular voice and complex cosmology. Oscillating from present to past and traversing the globe with its subject, this is cinema full of rhythm and intensity, embodying the essence of Graves’ music itself.
