My ears are still ringing from Neils trusty "Old Black" GibsonSG !!! Actually, it wasn't too bad in that respect (Wendy woulda killed me if it was just a guitar based gig :) there were only momentary flashes of the electric squalling beast. And when Young squares off against Stephen Stills, i'm in guitar heaven...
Regardless, this is easily one of my favorite movies of this year. It transcends the normally staid concert film genre by subverting it in typical Neil Young fashion by being something much more - its a very serious (but thankfully humorous at times) & intelligent piece of provocative art which attempts to convey a extremely pertinent issue to all Americans who saw the tour. The key issue in question is an old chestnut - the needless waste of human life on something that was entirely avoidable which is the elephant called the Iraq war.
By cleverly including journalist Mike Cerre, they were able to use his experience & influence to gauge the response of the audience attending the gigs. This enabled Young in his directorial mode to include crucially both points of view - pro & anti war. Its just one of the intriguing facets in this tale. Also interviewed are numerous casualties of the current war - both soldiers & probably more compellingly, the wives, partners and kids of these people sent to the front lines. Their testimonies are often very emotional, tender, heartbreaking and very real.
The key reason for CSNY coming together on this tour was to support Neil's rapidly produced album "Living with War". Another pleasant surprise was how the other 3 (CSN) decided that supporting Neil & touring the new album was the right thing to do at that time. There are some poignant moments captured on film which reflect their commitment to this project.
I can recommend this to more than fans of the music, its a great piece of film-making which does the dual job of informing & entertaining you very well.
Needless to say for me, its going in the collection when it gets a DVD release !!!
But, having said that, it is well worth your while to see it on the big screen if you can.
One review down, more to come...
1 comment:
Hey Jamie Ross (aka my big bro) - brilliant blog bud, finally you get to put the Eklektik j-mark to good use - yay! Well done and keep it going, great to see you putting your talent to good use.
Love you.
Lil Sis
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