The Last Waltz (1978)
I see this movie gets high marks by lots of viewers, and I'll say right off that I like the Band, and love most of the performers in the movie. And some of the individual performances are terrific, which live shows do not guarantee. Getting unadorned footage of Neil Young or Joni Mitchell is great, and lots of different songs by the Band itself, excellent for what it all is.
But as a movie, something to sit and watch and get involved in? Not a chance. The interviews were really really boring even for someone like me prepared to be fascinated. And there is a lot of it, people sitting around talking about how really great the music was and how the concert was meant to be more than just music, but a celebration, blah blah. My god, these are adults talking! Ha...so full of themselves, and Scorsese, a great director, seems sucked into the rock star worship, too, forgetting to film it, edit it, and make it more than just another rock and roll concert film. Which is what it is.
As a quick comparison, you find something similar in Jonathan Demme's "Stop Making Sense" which is better just by virtue of being more polished and devoid of silly interviews. And there's "Woodstock," which has a whole other level of historical interest. Maybe there was a feeling "The Last Waltz" was in fact an historical moment, but not really, not for anyone except, maybe, the Band.
You all know who you are. If you love the music, you'll love the music. The interviews are hard to imagine liking more than once, if that, but the music is what it is. I'd recommend the CD.
I see this movie gets high marks by lots of viewers, and I'll say right off that I like the Band, and love most of the performers in the movie. And some of the individual performances are terrific, which live shows do not guarantee. Getting unadorned footage of Neil Young or Joni Mitchell is great, and lots of different songs by the Band itself, excellent for what it all is.
But as a movie, something to sit and watch and get involved in? Not a chance. The interviews were really really boring even for someone like me prepared to be fascinated. And there is a lot of it, people sitting around talking about how really great the music was and how the concert was meant to be more than just music, but a celebration, blah blah. My god, these are adults talking! Ha...so full of themselves, and Scorsese, a great director, seems sucked into the rock star worship, too, forgetting to film it, edit it, and make it more than just another rock and roll concert film. Which is what it is.
As a quick comparison, you find something similar in Jonathan Demme's "Stop Making Sense" which is better just by virtue of being more polished and devoid of silly interviews. And there's "Woodstock," which has a whole other level of historical interest. Maybe there was a feeling "The Last Waltz" was in fact an historical moment, but not really, not for anyone except, maybe, the Band.
You all know who you are. If you love the music, you'll love the music. The interviews are hard to imagine liking more than once, if that, but the music is what it is. I'd recommend the CD.