Steve-O
03-02-2010, 11:31 AM
Eddie and Dave's comments about Martin Scorsese's Shine a Light has me thinking about Stones movies. Shine was in IMAX format but wasn't the first. Rolling Stones in the Max was. In the Max is interesting because on the BIG screen you can see that Mick uses teleprompters. Not for lyrics but for stage direction. I remember reading "Yellow jacket, center stage, Ruby Tuesday" on one of the monitors. Obviously Mick riffs on his lyrics when he performs live so he's not reading the words.
Back to Shine a Light. It's not much of a film. I remember a few years ago Scorsese supposedly "directed" a documentary for the History Channel on NY City (after 9/11). The film was so poorly put together that the network had to almost completely re-edit the film because it was such garbage. Scorsese clearly doesn't do all the things he puts his name on (kind of like a Tom Clancy book). I suspect Shine A Light and that documentary really had very little to do with Scorsese. It's an average concert film - and one of many from the Stones. I've seen The Rolling Stones many times live and I did laugh when Keith did his solo set in Shine A Light -- they intercut his songs with archive footage... basically stepping over his out-of-tune set. I usually love Keith's solo stuff but he wasn't very good in Shine A Light. Worse is that he's now doing jokes about himself in the act: "It's great to be here... but it's great to be anywhere!"
If you want to see a great Stones film skip Shine A Light.
Try:
Sympathy for the Devil (1968) directed by Jean-Luc Godard! It's an art film mixed with a documentary about the making of Sympathy for the Devil. Seeing the song constructed piece by piece is amazing. There's a couple of different cuts out there. Look for the complete edit.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7I8TqyQm1-0
Gimme Shelter (1970) the ultimate anti-Woodstock rock film.
and
C*cksucker Blues (1972) Photographer Robert Frank's film about the Stones' 1972 American tour. The band so drugged out and boring Mick had the band stage some rock-and-roll partying (including groupies getting it on with roadies) to make it seem more interesting. The film was never released and if you've seen it you know why. It's still a fascinating look at boredom on the road.
Back to Shine a Light. It's not much of a film. I remember a few years ago Scorsese supposedly "directed" a documentary for the History Channel on NY City (after 9/11). The film was so poorly put together that the network had to almost completely re-edit the film because it was such garbage. Scorsese clearly doesn't do all the things he puts his name on (kind of like a Tom Clancy book). I suspect Shine A Light and that documentary really had very little to do with Scorsese. It's an average concert film - and one of many from the Stones. I've seen The Rolling Stones many times live and I did laugh when Keith did his solo set in Shine A Light -- they intercut his songs with archive footage... basically stepping over his out-of-tune set. I usually love Keith's solo stuff but he wasn't very good in Shine A Light. Worse is that he's now doing jokes about himself in the act: "It's great to be here... but it's great to be anywhere!"
If you want to see a great Stones film skip Shine A Light.
Try:
Sympathy for the Devil (1968) directed by Jean-Luc Godard! It's an art film mixed with a documentary about the making of Sympathy for the Devil. Seeing the song constructed piece by piece is amazing. There's a couple of different cuts out there. Look for the complete edit.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7I8TqyQm1-0
Gimme Shelter (1970) the ultimate anti-Woodstock rock film.
and
C*cksucker Blues (1972) Photographer Robert Frank's film about the Stones' 1972 American tour. The band so drugged out and boring Mick had the band stage some rock-and-roll partying (including groupies getting it on with roadies) to make it seem more interesting. The film was never released and if you've seen it you know why. It's still a fascinating look at boredom on the road.