As a Stones fan, SHINE A LIGHT was an exceptionally concert documentary. It's not as great as the genres best (GIMME SHELTER and Scorsese's own THE LAST WALTZ) but it showcases one of the greatest bands of all time with great stylistic flair and inventive camerawork.
*Skip it if your not a fan of the Rolling Stone. It's just not meant for you.
Martin Scorsese's "Shine a Light" accomplishes two remarkable things: it reaffirms (yet again) my love of Scorsese as the GREATEST AMERICAN DIRECTOR ALIVE(!) and...makes me love the Rolling Stones(!!!).
I was not a particular fan of the Stones going into Scorsese's new documentary/concert film, shot over two days as a benefit for the Clinton Foundation at the Beacon Theater in October of 2006 (around the time his Oscar winning "The Departed" was released), but I am now.
From the opening explosion that is "Jumpin' Jack Flash," through many slower or lesser known works, culminating with such hits as "Sympathy for the Devil" and "Satisfaction," Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Charlie Watts and Ron Wood are at the top of their game!
Seeing the film in IMAX at a nearby theater, I was blown away (literally) by the sound levels and the amazing cinematography by Robert Richardson (he oversees 9 Oscar winning and/or nominated cinematographers operating the cameras including Ellen Kuras, Robert Elswit, Stuart Drysburgh, etc.). This film makes you feel like you're not only at this concert two years hence, but that you're ON STAGE WITH THE ROLLING FRICKIN' STONES!
This film is not only an ecstatic reconfirmation of the vitality (and energy) of the Stones, but it's just a rocking good time!
i felt i kinda wasted my time with this one. id hoped it was more about the band and not just a concert doc. i enjoyed buddy guy's appearance but christina aguilera's appearance was nothing short of cringe-worthy. i liked that they played a few songs that werent obvious choices but overall seems a bit overrated.
Probably would've enjoyed this better if I was expecting a concert...and if I was a fan of the Stones. Looks and sounds great...just not my thing is all.
I thought it was jumpy and more about what codgers the stones are. The music is still great and it has the on stage feel but doesn't replace seeing them live.
This is not just a concert movie. While much of the film centers around the concert in NY, interspersed throughout are archival clips from interviews forming any implicit retrospective. I now understand why people pay hundreds of dollars for a concert ticket. It is best seen on the big screen.
It's pretty good when viewed on a dodgy screen with the constant whirr of jet engines. Imagine what it's like on a cinema screen. Great cuts back to stoned archive footage. If only they knew then...
Martin Scorsese directed the best concert film of all time "The Last Waltz". This time out he has directed the best Rolling Stones film to date and there has been many of them.
The film work is great here. The Stones are having fun here. Mick Jagger is in his Sixties now and he is still amazing. The music is still great and full of energy.
Keith Richards is very funny here and Charlie Watts speaks.
A must on when it comes out on DVD for Stones fans and there is still many and this film shows why.
I have never been a Stones fan, I like their music but I would never ever sit down and chill to an album of theirs. This movie was one big stones concert. It doesnt take a genious to figure out my critiques of it. But I did actually enjoy it. Scorsese really tried hard to put us there into the action and it works well. The shots are beautiful and look stunning on the cinema screen. Its a shame he didnt make this more of a documentary about the band though which would have been much more interesting. The Stones deliver a great musical performance, and Are well worth a watch.
Haw! Bill Clinton handshaking the Stones. Hillary is there too. Cut to
Bill and Hillary holding hands as they walk across the stage. It's a
back shot, low, beagle high angle.
Scorsese doing the Stones! Wow. He did the blues. He did Dylan and now
the Stones. The man knows his music; I mean, on top of being the best
film director alive. And this time, it's a concert at a relatively
small venue of the Beacon Theatre, as the boys play in New Yawk City
for a Clinton charity.
The band starts with "Jumpin' Jack Flash' and baby, it's a gas, gas,
gas. Mick moves like he's half his age. Probably has something to do
with running six miles a day. Keith is a bit slow and wiry, cracking a
sly smile. Old Charlie's good, as usual and Ronnie slides on his guitar
like a coke bottle down a ten mile incline.
The band looks like it has weathered many a 'crossfire hurricane'--you
can see it in their now craggy faces, especially when Scorsese directs
a cut to clips of those smooth, innocent, devil may care faces of the
past.
"Shattered" is next. Mick sings to New York, "To live in this town, you
must be tough, tough, tough, tough, tough. Rats on the West Side,
bedbugs uptown...." And the crowd is loving it, although with the
exception of some of the band's back up, one from Brooklyn (a lusty
lady), the other, a guy from from Queens and the third, a fellow from
South Africa, they've probably never had an existential taste of Big
Apple tough. It's all part of the Stones' conscious irony, singing
laughing, smiling as the charity crowd rock 'n roars its approval.
"She was hot" comes up next. And the swaying women in the front rows,
nearest the stage, all hot, look up.....mmmm, delicious...and this is
followed by a rip, snorting "All Down the Line". Then another from one
that classic albumn, "Exile on Mainstreet". Hey, this albumn was
blaring over the loudspeakers last, at the Fremantle Blues and Roots
Festival. It's duet this time with Jack White III. Sir Mick and Jack
White III sing "Loving Cup", a veiled bluesy kind of reference to a
certain part of the female anatomy. Well done, Jack the Third.
Ah then, Marianne Faithful. Wish she'd been there. Mick makes a
reference to how this was one of the first songs which the Stones wrote
and then gave away to Ms. Faithful. "As Tears Go By", with
a very pretty guitar, played by Keith, Mick on vocals.
Okay, so you get the picture. No, you oughta go see the picture. One
thing more though, "Champagne & Reefer". YES! Now, here's a piece which
Mick says he first heard Muddy Waters do. Geez oh peez-o. What a great
song! And who's on stage with the band this time? Buddy, mo-fo, Guy!
Duets with Keith and Ronnie's guitar playing and Mick on the
Mississippi saxophone. Sweet. And the lyrics will tear you up.
Fantastic, absolutely sensational and fun and it was great to see Mick Jagger doing a badass dance early on and having a great fun at his age and it was totally enjoyable watching this, a cool extrvaganza of rock 'n roll and hopefully, its reincarnation. Also, it had some nice cutaways to interveiews which were real fun for any Rolling Stones fan.
For several years I have been a huge fan of both the band and Scorsese, and eever since I got into Scorsese (which happened after I got into The Stones), I was longing for a collaboration between the two that involved more than Marty using thier music as a backdrop to his films. When I first heard about this film, I basically creamed myself (for lack of a better phrase). Finally. A true collaboration. However, before I continue the review, a brief departure. I was fortunate enough to get to see the Rolling Stoens perform in St. Louis in 2006. It was an incredible experience, and one that I'll probably never get to replicate ever again. Ok, here's why I told you that. As awesome as it was for the Stoens and Scorsese to finally collaborate in a proper way, it was unsatisfying for me. Granted, this film is really, really good, but it could have been great. Seeign this flm just can't compare with seeing the band in person, even if they are in their 60's. First, a few more gripes (minor as they are, they are still enough to prevent a 5-star rating). I wanna say that I'm ok with the fact that it's PG-13, but I'm not, especially because of the fact that in order to get a PG-13 (for whatever reason) censorship was needed. Why the hell was the 'black girls' line completely ommitted from "Some Girls", and why was it deemed necessary to remove the line about the Kennedys from "Sympathy for the Devil"? To be fair, they do allow a couple of f-bombs to slip by, but only a couple (two are bleeped-one is from archive footage). Originally the film was rated R for language, and they should have just left it like that. Editing it to get a PG-13, thus allowing for a more commercially friendly film is stupid. Especially when it involves the Rolling Stones. These guys are legends. No matter what it's rated, it's gonna be commercially succesful, even if it's Rated R. Another gripe: the performances of their bigger and more well-known hits are a let-down, especially "Sympathy for the Devil" (and not because of the censorship, either). The best performances are the not as well known songs like "Far Away Eyes", "You got the Silver", and the spectacular, show stoppng cover of Muddy Waters' "Champagne and Reefer", done with a little help from blues legend Buddy Guy. Of the bigger hits though, "Brown Sugar", and "Start Me Up" (even though that songs annoys me a lot) are great. "Jumping Jack Flash" is decent, but I've heard better versions. Ok, time for the positives. The aformentioned Buddy Guy guest appearance is definitely at the top. Christina Aguilera (surprisingly) holds her own and also almost manages to steal the show. Jack White's guest appearance is good, but he seems a bit too star struck. The use of well-chosen and equally well-placed archive footage throughout is superb. The archive footage manages to flow with the concert, and works with it, not against it. The opening segment involving the planning and backstage preparation for the show might bore people who are solely Stones fans, and not also hardcore film fans, but I loved it. It was cool getting to see the hard work that goes into a product like this, and it's funny as hell, too. I haven't yet seen "The Last Waltz" *gasp*! I know, I know, it's shocking. However, even though I haven't seen it, I know that it's superior based on what I've read and heard. In watching Shine a Light though, I can tell that Marty wasn't trying to top his earlier work. No, with this, he was just trying to have fun, and showcase that, even though The Rolling Stones should have reitred years ago, they can still rock really hard, despite their ages. Both he and the band succeed, and despite the films problems, it's still really good, as is the set (even though they've had better sets in the past), and that is why I gave it at least a 4 star rating, despite the gripes I have with it. My bias for both Marty and the band is while I inflated it. Overall ,the film doesn't disappoint. I was slightly let down, but that was just for personal reasons. Don't let things like that keep you from enjoying this glorious celebration of great music and great filmmaking.
I saw this with a few of my friends. I think most will agree with me when I give it half a star. I'm only doing that because I don't know how to give zeros.
scorsese films the stones in concert, at the beacon in newyork city, me not being a stones fan, but being a masssive scorsese fan, i was curious but not exited, although, when hes used there tunes in many of his films, it always lifts the films that little bit higher, so i wanted to see this, and i will say, for a scorsese direction, its retty average, not really showing much style and scorsese trademarks, although a odd one or two get in there, but just lets the music do the talking, and this part works, theyu show great stage presence, and especially keith richards, the star of trhe show, on stage like a predator going for the kill, with his guitar riffs, and walking round stage, hes certainly got it, some vintage interview footage also makes it in, maybe showing the way scorsese could have gone, mybe like his other bob dylan tv doc, and also the first 10-15 minutes are a joy, as we see preperation of show, with lots of scorsese coming off rather serious but also funny, its a shame he then disapears, but after all this is about the rolling stones in concert, could have been better, but also a whole lot worse.
Watching this legendary and passionate group on such a large screen is a remarkable experience. In the hands of Scorsese, the film technique is genius. Highlghts include Jack White's joyous guest appearance, Buddy Guy's electrifying stare, Keith sharing secrets with his guitar and Mick's intense and energetic performance. A shame the film wasn't in 3-D. Ultimately, it's a miracle this band remains better than most live acts today.
the trailer made my cry. the movie made me smile for 2h 4min. i love rolling stones and Shine a light gets you so near them it was like seeing them live. Visually amazing, sound amazing, directing amazing, Rolling Stones - i don't have words.
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