Rating: 
Summary: A fascinating impression of a great and unusual man.
Review: This film is a treat. Unlike most biographical films, it does not attempt to provide a chronological history of its subject: rather, it provides a series of glimpses into the nature and character of the man . And what a man Glenn Gould was; an extraordinary classical pianist, writer, broadcaster; an eccentric in some ways, infuriating, loveable, puzzling. Yet his art has enriched the lives of many. In my opinion, no writer has ever captured the "essence" of Gould : (perhaps he himself would not want his innermost nature to be disclosed; he was a very private and reclusive man) but this film makes a creditable attempt to do this, although it is probably attempting the impossible. It's thirty-two short sections (the format is modelled on the 32 sections of Gould's mosts famous recording, Bach's Goldberg Variations) each reveals a different aspect of Gould's work and personality. Some of these "short films" are acted; some consist of interviews with Gould's colleagues and friends; one or two are purely musical. Perhaps one criticism of the film might be that it is, inevitably, rather superficial; there is simply insufficient time to explore such a complex character in depth. And it does tend to exaggerate some of the odd an eccentric aspects of the man, such as his obsession with illness, and his mannerisms. But for all this it does give an idea of his intensity, his commitment to his art, his sheer creativity. Gould is played by Colm Feore, whose performance is understated and near-perfect. Although the soundtrack uses Gould's own recordings to great effect, you never "see" him actually play the piano (such an enactment would surely be a travesty of the real Gould) but Feore is convincing to the point where many people have said they thought they were watching clips of the real Gould, not an actor, despite the fact that he does not actually resemble the man he is playing. If you love music, whether or not you know much about Glenn Gould's work, love him or hate him, find him exasperating or simply have never heard of him, you will probably enjoy this film; and with luck you will end up wanting to know more of both the man and his glorious music.
Rating:
Summary: Moving and unique
Review: This film is kind of a biography of Glenn Gould portrayed through thirty-two vignettes, the number that matches the number of Goldberg Variations by Bach, of which the Theme opens and closes the film, along with the introduction of the recurring theme of Solitude that Gould was enamored with by showing the actor approaching/walking away from the camera in a barren winter landscape.
The only reason I did not give the film 5 stars was that not all of the short films were equal in strength. There is definitely enough variety, though, to keep most anyone interested throughout the picture, even if you are not a Glenn Gould buff.
Colm Feore does an absolutely excellent job portraying the artist and brings out many facets to who we can assume GG was through his writings and interviews of those who knew him. The shorts contain histories, animations, musical performances, dramatized life scenes, interviews with friends and colleagues, writings brought to life, and more variations visually and musically that really are diificult to describe. I am a musician, though not a pianist, and some of the shorts I found moving and beautiful to the point of getting me misty-eyed, and beyond that I found the explorations of the man simply fascinating. I was encouraged through seeing this film to buy the book The Glenn Gould Reader, which is a great collection of many of his intelligent and witty writings. This director also gave us The Red Violin, and even though these two films could be considered as different genres, I truly enjoyed this one more between the two (though I do own both).
Rating: 
Summary: Not a documentary; not meant to be.
Review: This is a wonderful film. It has introduced me to Glenn Gould after I had been studiously avoiding him due to a purist "authentic performance" buff's dislike of Bach on the piano. Many wasted years. As to the film itself, it is not a documentary. It was never meant to be. Nor does it have a linear story line. It was never meant to have. It is a pastiche, a cinematographic collage using a theme. The theme is Gould and his relationships and we see the number of effects he had on people from a huge variety of the social spectrum. Really this is why it is like variations on a theme, and juxtaposing this to the Goldberg Variations (unique too in their own way, being the ONLY set of Variations Bach ever composed) is a masterful stroke. Judicious use of dramatic license portrays this obviously complex man in a very sympathetic light and with real cinematographic flair. The Hamburg scene so eloquently evokes Germany that I felt a momentary pang of "homesickness" (I lived there for 8 years). Masterful cinema, beautifully paced, varied and interesting. I must answer the typically america-centric view of one of the reviewers directly. There are two reasons why Yehudi Menhuin speaks French. 1)The film was made by Canadians and English is not the only language in the world, and 2)It is sonically more interesting to have a French interview at that point in the film. Far from struggling with his French I feel that Mr. Menhuin was struggling with ideas and concepts about a complex and confusing man and Mr Menhuins relationship to him. Masterful cinema....just think more about it
Rating:
Summary: No life is one-dimesional
Review: This riveting film explores Glenn Gould's life through 32 short pieces that make up a cohesive representation of this complex genius's life.
The acting is brilliant as is the cinematography. You become immersed in Gould's world, bizarre as it is. Almost cubist in it's multi-faceted view of Gould's life, the film reaffirms our own understanding that our own lives also can never be truly told in a linear way.
Rating:
Summary: Glen Gould Rocks You
Review: What an interesting collection of meditations on the stupefying musicality of Glen Gould. This pianist is from another planet. Classical music has never been so exciting to a rock n' roll fan.
Rating:
Summary: Succeeds admirably at what it is
Review: What it isn't is a film bio/documentary. In a pointillistic, fragmentary way the filmaker allows you a sense of who Glenn Gould was in a way that I think Gould himself would have been pleased with given his own modus operandi in his radio scripts: the interaction of many voices- tiny fragments making a larger idea clearer in a way that a more prosaic approach would have failed. Best enjoyed by people who have at least a passing knowledge of who he was but an interesting and moving film by any standards. As noted by another reviewer here: more than the sum of its parts.
Rating:
Summary: Unique portrait of one of our favorite artists & eccentrics
Review: When I watched this movie for the first time I had a small working knowledge of the genius of GG. This film really puts Gould's life, eccentricities and passions into a delicious nutshell. The 32 films represent a life in variations (after the Goldberg Variations: aria and 30 variations of the ground bass and aria recap). Other reviews will argue that _32 Films About Glenn Gould_ is too sporadic and uncentered, and not without justifiable ignorance. When I first saw this film I was overwhelmed by the amount of subject matter covered in such a short amount of time. Some of the sections didn't make a whole lot of sense to me at the time either. What I can tell you is that each vignette does have real meaning and attachment to the artist. In my studies since I have discovered nearly all of the connections. Any movie that can inspire you to search for more knowledge and enjoyment can only be good. If you love movies about music you will not be disappointed. Other reviewers have also argued that this is not an authenic biography about Gould. But to say that the deviations are so great as to render the movie invaluable would be a big mistake in this reviewer's opinion. Oh, by the way, this is also, without a doubt, the greatest soundtrack ever assembled for any movie. I say this not because of the material (though one could certainly make that arguement), but how the music is presented with the images on the screen. I defy anyone who watches this movie not to, at the very least, be tempted to purchase it.
Rating: 
Summary: Whom did you say this movie was about?
Review: While the idea of a movie that has the same structure as the masterpiece that made Gould an over night sensation looks good on paper, the result is not. Even if it's sound track is certainly among the best used in any movie, all I really liked about the movie were it's very first and last segment. These segments represent theme of this "movie Goldberg". While the movie may be informative to the Gould novice drawing attention to the performer for his eccentricities, it reveals little that can be regarded as truly meaningful. On top of that the Gould part is performed by an actor, that portrays a character that is at complete odds with that of the pianist. Gould is deprived of the major assets of his personality: his sense of humor. Just plain awful. Too bad, the result could have been so much better.
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