Only the Strong Survive - A Celebration of Soul (2002)

61% of critics liked it
(44 reviews)
50% of users liked it
(549 ratings)

Roger Friedman is an entertainment journalist and music fan with a particular love for R&B and soul music from the mid-'50s to the pre-disco era of the early '70s. Owing in part to segregated booking policies and simple lack of proper archiving, Friedman discovered there is little or no surviving… More Roger Friedman is an entertainment journalist and music fan with a particular love for R&B and soul music from the mid-'50s to the pre-disco era of the early '70s. Owing in part to segregated booking policies and simple lack of proper archiving, Friedman discovered there is little or no surviving film footage or videotape of many of the greatest artists of the era performing on-stage. However, a large number of the performers in question were still active and performing on a regular basis, and with the help of documentary filmmakers Chris Hegedus and D.A. Pennebaker, Friedman set out to capture some of his favorites on film while they were still in good form. Only the Strong Survive features knockout performances from such R&B legends as Wilson Pickett, Jerry Butler, the Chi-Lites, Carla Thomas, Mary Wilson, Ann Peebles, and many more, as well as interviews in which the artists discuss the ups and downs of their lives in music. Only the Strong Survive also features performance footage of Memphis R&B pioneer Rufus Thomas, who had passed on at the age of 84, less than two months before the film was screened at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 36 min.
Directed By: Chris Hegedus, D.A. Pennebaker
Genres: Musical & Performing Arts, Documentary

In Theaters: Jan 1, 2002 Wide
On DVD: Feb 3, 2004
Studio: Miramax Films

Critic Reviews

Randy Cordova, Arizona Republic
There's no problem with a little bias, but Friedman's fan-boy perspective puts the subjects of Only the Strong Survive on too high a pedestal.
Gene Seymour, Newsday
Content to merely serve as a cluttered, heart-shaped scrapbook, missing many more stories than it bothers to include.
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
... the music is great, but as a film thumbs down.
Richard Harrington, Washington Post
Fortunately, the performances themselves are beautifully filmed and recorded.
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post
A film that even with its flaws should be cheered for preserving the later years of these towering musical talents.
Mike Clark, USA Today
Worth the time and money some of the summer's effects-driven spectacles probably won't be.
Cole Smithey, ColeSmithey.com
...fails to give audiences as much frame of reference for the unifying economic, political and atmospheric elements that made the Stax brand of R&B soul music so powerful.
Christopher Null, Filmcritic.com
you get the feeling that Hegedus and Pennebaker couldn't care less about soul music.
David Cornelius, eFilmCritic.com
I would have prefered deeper insights... [but] as a concert film, this one's a blast.
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul), St. Paul Pioneer Press
A disorganized sprawl.
Shawn Levy, Oregonian
Lacks context, depth and a sense of purpose.
John Beifuss, Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Invaluable as a record of its subjects (including the late, great Rufus Thomas), but it doesn't cohere as a feature...
Brent Simon, Entertainment Today
A loving look at soul's golden era that leaves you wanting more; a disappointment in some respects because it doesn't craft a more comprehensive, cohesive background.
Jeffrey M. Anderson, San Francisco Examiner
The scrappy country cousin to the high-gloss Standing in the Shadows of Motown.
Marshall Fine, Journal News (Westchester, NY)
These survivors share a timelessness and a universality that remain untouched by the fickle shifts of popular culture.