Can't Stand Losing You: Surviving The Police (2012)

What makes Can’t Stand Losing You: Surviving The Police special is that it doesn’t feel like a greatest-hits victory lap—it feels like you’re standing just offstage with Andy Summers as he remembers how lightning actually strikes. Through his own photos, rare archival footage, and a guitarist’s-eye view of ego, craft, and chemistry, the film turns The Police’s meteoric rise into something intimate and human, with the music pulsing through it like a heartbeat rather than a soundtrack. There’s a reflective, slightly bittersweet vibe that honors both the thrill of creation and the cost of fame, building naturally toward the band’s long-awaited reunion without turning it into tabloid drama. If you want a glossy, comprehensive band encyclopedia, this may feel narrower than that—but if you’re curious what it felt like to survive the storm from the inside, it’s irresistible.

Can’t Stand Losing You: Surviving The Police is clearly trying to give you The Police story from the guitarist’s eye line, leaning on Andy Summers’ memoir, photos, and personal footage to capture what it felt like inside the machine. The problem is it often plays more like a restrained, one-man scrapbook than a sharp, dynamic band documentary, with narration that can feel droning and a pace that rarely surprises. If you’re hoping for messy interpersonal tension, fresh revelations, or a broader, more balanced look at Sting and Copeland, you may find it dour and oddly limited. Still, if you’re already a Police devotee or a Summers completist, the archival material and behind-the-scenes perspective can be a quietly satisfying time capsule.