March 26, 2002

Posted March 26, 2002

False alarm: The much anticipated broadcast of Joni Mitchell: Both Sides Now and Then on the CBC's Life & Times program failed to materialize tonight as announced by the CBC, leaving a trail of disappointed Joni Mitchell fans across Canada. The brief message from CBC, in its entirety: "Joni Mitchell: Both Sides Now and Then, Parts One and Two, originally scheduled for broadcast March 26th and April 2, 2002 at 7 p.m. has been postponed until fall 2002 due to unforeseen production difficulties."

Very frustrating. But looking back, maybe I should have seen this coming. My guess: When the CBC requested a finished two hour program for a broadcast date many months earlier than what the original production schedule called for, the timetable accelerated to a pace that made it impossible to complete the film at an acceptable level of quality. Maybe what the CBC calls "unforeseen production difficulties" could just as easily be interpreted as "sticking to the original schedule."

A loss, to be sure, but only a temporary one. I expect that fans in both Canada and the U.S. will see similar versions of Joni Mitchell: Both Sides Now and Then released at around the same time, later on this year. I think we'll see a film that's been put together with the care the filmmakers originally intended, and that it will be worth the wait.