It Might Get Loud (2009)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Tired of P

  
  Alrighty! It is that time again - Documentary time. It Might Get Loud. I saw this particular documentary about year ago but just had to watch it again this weekend. Why? Well, because this one is about music. Although movies are my number one passion, (obviously) music is my… More
  Alrighty! It is that time again - Documentary time. It Might Get Loud. I saw this particular documentary about year ago but just had to watch it again this weekend. Why? Well, because this one is about music. Although movies are my number one passion, (obviously) music is my second. If I am awake 16 hours a day I am probably listening to music 12 of those hours. Really. Music is playing somewhere when I have my first cup of coffee, getting dressed, in the car, shopping, or even when I am walking. When am I not listening to music? Well, when I am watching movies, of course, but when I writing my reviews - abso-freakin-lutely!! (You ask, what I am listening to now?...Adele) It Might Get Loud showcases the guitarists from the following bands: Led Zepplin, U2 and The White Stripes and even has them sitting around together talking and playing. Yeah! See my point on why I jumped at the chance to watch it again? Jimmy Page, The Edge and Jack White are rock GODS!!! I am not sure you could put three cooler, if that is a good enough adjective, musicians together in a room. It was awesome. For more of my review: http://www.tiredofpreviews.com/2011/09/it-might-get-loud.html

• Stephen M

  
  The White Stripes' Jack White, Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page and U2's The Edge explore the enduring appeal of the electric guitar. With White, on the one hand, bemoaning technology as a "big destroyer of emotion and truth" and The Edge, conversely, enthusing that… More
  The White Stripes' Jack White, Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page and U2's The Edge explore the enduring appeal of the electric guitar. With White, on the one hand, bemoaning technology as a "big destroyer of emotion and truth" and The Edge, conversely, enthusing that effects units "have always pushed music forward", the opening autobiographical segments whet the appetite for what promise to be some highly entertaining differences of opinion in the group discussion phase. Sadly, mutual respect and natural reticence take over when the three get together, and without a moderator to focus proceedings and to ask some probing questions, nothing gleaned from this portion of the film can match, say, the simple eloquence of Jimmy Page's joyful expression when he's listening to an old Link Wray or Muddy Waters record. There's also something very stiff and perfunctory about the jamming, and the decision to end a documentary about the electric guitar with an all-acoustic rendition of The Band's <i>The Weight</i> felt somewhat perverse.

• Daniel J D

  
  needs more Jack White

• Carlos M

  
  It is fascinating to see those three rock guitar legends interacting and talking about the instrument, their personal stories and what inspires them - and even if it could have benefited from a more linear structure, this insightful documentary never stops being interesting.

• Jake .

  
  You know, this movie might actually have been really good had I really concentrated and watched it; but I have my doubts. As it stands right now, I enjoyed the experience I got out of it, but that is very little. It is a pleasent movie to watch and listen too, much in the same way of… More
  You know, this movie might actually have been really good had I really concentrated and watched it; but I have my doubts. As it stands right now, I enjoyed the experience I got out of it, but that is very little. It is a pleasent movie to watch and listen too, much in the same way of the act of listening to music. There is a surprising amount of visual style, and that is something I very much enjoyed and appriciated. It has a very urban and artistically gritty look and feel. People who actually like all three bands/musicians will get more out of the movie than I did. The only part I am too terribly familiar with is The White Stripes/Jack White. As far as the actual content of the film, I have nothing to say. Supposedly, this was a very information documentary; but I didn't feel the need to pay enough attention to catch on, or really care. This movie is successful in the same way as a concert documentary. There is the meat and "content", but that isn't what anybody cares about. We watch movies like this for the music we love, and to see the faces and lives of those behind it.

• Michael S

  
  A very good documentary about the electric guitar, and three legends and their musical journey. It has it's pacing issues, but the real blow against the film is the way in which it eliminates Jack White from a lot of the discussion and really rushed through his story. He was the… More
  A very good documentary about the electric guitar, and three legends and their musical journey. It has it's pacing issues, but the real blow against the film is the way in which it eliminates Jack White from a lot of the discussion and really rushed through his story. He was the most interesting of the three, yet they kept neglecting him in favor of more Edge and Page. It's a shame really, because I could have watched hours of what Jack White had to say. Sadly this film just doesn't do him justice.

• Chris G

  
  It Might Get Loud follows the progression of three generations of guitar players and locks them in a room together so that they can discuss their craft and play. The trio features Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin, The Edge of U2, and Jack White of the White Stripes. Each goes over their… More
  It Might Get Loud follows the progression of three generations of guitar players and locks them in a room together so that they can discuss their craft and play. The trio features Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin, The Edge of U2, and Jack White of the White Stripes. Each goes over their stories of coming of age with the electric guitar. The thing about It Might Get Loud is that it not show how each player progressed with the electric guitar, but it also gives the audience insights into each mans personality. Jack White is obviously trying to create a legend for himself, but this pseudo marketing campaign he's on reads as almost pathetic at times. Yeah, he may be a great guitar player, but the story he wraps himself with seems almost convoluted and cliched. Sure, you like vinyl. You're trying to be old school. You failed. Sorry. Good luck on the next shitty Bond theme. The Edge plays just as you expect the Edge to play in this film. He spends a lot of his time traveling back to the school where U2 was formed and basically reminisces about the good old days of Irish bombings and Top of the Pops. He also shows us a rig that would make anyone except David Gilmour shudder with delight. Finally, you get Jimmy Page, who has a tone of history to go through and presents as the most down to earth of the three. This is surprising since Jimmy supposedly worshipped Satan and was the guardian of a 14 years old love slave in the 1970's. To say that Page has mellowed is a mild way of putting it. He sure as hell can play a guitar, even with powers bequeathed by the dark lord himself. He discusses being a session musician and Led Zeppelin (sadly, not much Yardbirds stuff). The most interesting part of the film is Page standing in the foyer of Hedley Grange, discussing how they recorded the DRUMS for When The Levee Breaks. Bonzo even gets a mention in a guitar doc. When the film ends, you will wonder one thing: Why couldn't this whole thing have been about Jimmy Page. He's the most down to earth guy in the room, probably because he's Jimmy Page. The legends that both of these guys are trying to build (particularly White) he's had for almost thirty years. Seeing Page play makes me even more pissed off at Robert Plant for choosing an Allison Krauss tour over Led Zeppelin. Of course, he could always use David Coverdale...

• Stella D

  
  it's a rare gift for rock fans to see three generations of guitar heroes in the same room and to hear them talk about their influences and love for their instrument. jack white is suitably humble in the presence of his elders, the edge seems a bit of a prick frankly, but seeing… More
  it's a rare gift for rock fans to see three generations of guitar heroes in the same room and to hear them talk about their influences and love for their instrument. jack white is suitably humble in the presence of his elders, the edge seems a bit of a prick frankly, but seeing jimmy page's enthusiasm at the age of 64 is the biggest treat. who woulda thought he'd even live this long. there's alot of history here, which is great, but more interaction between the three woulda been nice too. still i can't complain too much about this as i mostly enjoyed the hell out of it

• William D

  
  "It Might Get Loud" is a fairly good documentary focusing on two rock legends, Jimmy Page and The Edge, and one legend-in-the-making, Jack White. The three men gather in what looks like an aircraft hangar, where they tell stories from their creative lives, particularly how… More
  "It Might Get Loud" is a fairly good documentary focusing on two rock legends, Jimmy Page and The Edge, and one legend-in-the-making, Jack White. The three men gather in what looks like an aircraft hangar, where they tell stories from their creative lives, particularly how they fell in love with the guitar. The filmmaker never speaks and is never seen; the subjects of the film do all the talking. But we don't only remain in the hangar. The filmmaker accompanies each man on a tour of certain locales that were particularly important in their musical lives. For example, Page leads us on a tour of the old house where much of Led Zeppelin IV was recorded. The Edge travels back to the school where he first met Bono. We see 1980s Detroit and present-day Tennessee through Jack White's eyes. There is very good music all throughout, and I was not bored for a second while watching "It Might Get Loud." But I wasn't greatly inspired by it. All the discussion of music was rather predictable -- nothing you haven't heard before if you've ever talked with a rock musician.

• Walter M

  
  The music documentary "It Might Get Loud" has a brilliant idea to bring together three renowned guitarists from three different generations and countries, Jimmy Page, The Edge and Jack White, and see what happens. Except the film forgets that they're there for long… More
  The music documentary "It Might Get Loud" has a brilliant idea to bring together three renowned guitarists from three different generations and countries, Jimmy Page, The Edge and Jack White, and see what happens. Except the film forgets that they're there for long periods, instead following them down memory lane, with some admittedly interesting insights and cool music, learning about music, buying guitars and then figuring out what kind of music they want to play.(Jimmy Page played in the studio orchestra for "Goldfinger" from days he would rather not talk about. And I did not know anything about Jack White going in, having stopped paying attention to pop music around 1991.) At the same time, the documentary can be equally pretentious, forgetting that "This Is Spinal Tap" was not just sending up hair bands. Surprisingly enough, the documentary's best scene is its opening moments as Jack White makes an electric guitar out of scrap which along with an audience is all you need to make great music. That cow especially looks ecstatic.

• Mark A

  
  Terrific documentary look at three generations of real guitar heroes. This viewer enjoyed learning how each of these three artists found their calling playing the six stringed instrument. The interaction when the three were together was instructive as well as entertaining. The mutual… More
  Terrific documentary look at three generations of real guitar heroes. This viewer enjoyed learning how each of these three artists found their calling playing the six stringed instrument. The interaction when the three were together was instructive as well as entertaining. The mutual respect was evident, as each of them would demonstrate a particular riff and the other two would then join in on an impromptu jam session. Not as familiar with Jack White, I had my doubts, but he proved to be an able musician who more than held his own with the other two legends. I found this to be a fascinating project that worked on several levels. It touched on the history of the guitar, provided insight into the lives of three of its practitioners, and provided a platform for future talent to launch a career trying to attack this most iconic instrument of rock. Long live Rock and Roll!

• Jeff T

  
  There's a real insider baseball feeling to this documentary about the meeting of three legendary guitarists (well, 2.5 - I'm completely unsure if Jack White is as legendary as he thinks he is, especially when the other two are Jimmy Page and The Edge). If this isn't… More
  There's a real insider baseball feeling to this documentary about the meeting of three legendary guitarists (well, 2.5 - I'm completely unsure if Jack White is as legendary as he thinks he is, especially when the other two are Jimmy Page and The Edge). If this isn't your musical language (and it's not mine) you may find your attention wandering from time to time, and I think this is a flaw in the filmmaking. I've seen and loved more than my fair share of docs that are about a subject of which I have absolutely no knowledge or affinity. And for all the interesting sections of this film, they are matched by the sections of not so much. But the jam session at the end is worth it, even for us non-believers. Truly awesome.

• Jason R

  
  With music in the state it is in right now, it is a relief to know that these gentlemen are on this earth playing music the way they do. Such a fantastic documentary that delves into the mind of three very talented musicians and what inspired them to not only pick up a guitar, but… More
  With music in the state it is in right now, it is a relief to know that these gentlemen are on this earth playing music the way they do. Such a fantastic documentary that delves into the mind of three very talented musicians and what inspired them to not only pick up a guitar, but also touches on who and what influenced them to play the way they play. I didn't want this movie to end, they could have made this a five hour film of just Page, White, and The Edge playing and I would of watched, re-watched it, and then watched again. Great insight into the minds of a couple of music legends, and if you can take anything away from this movies it is the fact that there are people out in the world like these gentlemen who find beauty and music in the most simplest of things.

• matt s

  
  This is great semi-chronicle of the three best guitarists of their respective generations. I liked best hearing the musicians decipher their favorite songs. But, honestly, The Edge seems the most human out of all of them, making fun of Sting and himself for doing an Irish type of… More
  This is great semi-chronicle of the three best guitarists of their respective generations. I liked best hearing the musicians decipher their favorite songs. But, honestly, The Edge seems the most human out of all of them, making fun of Sting and himself for doing an Irish type of Yoga. Jack White seems like he always wants to pick up something from someone else to write a song. Not saying that's a bad thing, I love him and his music, but he's so intense, like Peyton Manning in the NFL. I wanna see him break out and start uncontrollably laughing! Jimmy Page, he's old and he's a legend, but the best part about him was I had not known his background in Muzak. Either way, whether you like these guys or not, you see a side of each that the stage never presents.

• Wu C

  
  As much as it might seem amazing to see these three legends together in the same doc, it's pretty average.

• Kevin "

  
  It was cool to see what three different generations added to rock music, but White was the main draw. Moved a little slow at times too.

• Jonny C

  
  Being a fan of all three musicians I loved this. Each guitarist reflects on their own musical journeys, plus they also explain their song writing and recording processes, both past and present. It Might Get Loud is a must for fans of The White Stripes, U2 and Led Zeppelin.

Read all 17 featured audience ratings