The Last Waltz (Special Edition)
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Movie Reviews of The Last Waltz (Special Edition)
Movie Review: Five Stars for the Performances
Summary: 5 Stars
There are valid criticisms of this movie but if you are a fan of the Band and the roots/Americana music performed by most of their guests, you should own The Last Waltz. We've probably watched our copy 50 or more times, and our seven-year-old recognizes the performers when he hears them on the radio. Whatever their inner turmoil, and if drummer Levon Helm's account in "This Wheel's on Fire" is accurate there was plenty of turmoil, Rick Danko, Helm and Robbie Robertson appear to be putting everything they've got into their performances. It's remarkable to watch the Band accompany their guests with skill and respect. Helm's drumming particularly blew me away, and of course the Band's three singers, Danko, Helm and Richard Manuel, are among the most expressive rock vocalists ever. Contrary to appearances, however, Robertson's microphone was turned off because he's really a very poor singer. Which leads to the criticisms:
1. There is way too much Robbie Robertson, particularly in the interview segments, but in fairness, I don't know if it would have been possible to get much more out of the others. As Levon Helm's "This Wheel's on Fire" acknowledges, the members of the Band were all, except possibly Garth Hudson, strung out on various chemicals by the mid-1970s, leaving Robertson, strung out himself but apparently more functional, as de facto leader. By the Last Waltz, nobody else was writing songs or making decisions, and Robertson's own songwriting had gone downhill badly after the first two albums. One hears different motivations for Robertson's decision. Maybe he didn't want to continue if the quality couldn't be maintained. Maybe he felt, with punk and disco on the horizon, that the Band's time was coming to an end. Maybe he wanted to concentrate on his movie-star ambitions. Whatever the reasons, the others, who could not count on songwriting royalty income (Helm claims they did participate in songwriting but were cheated out of their rights), were not happy about Robertson's decision. Stoned, embittered, and viewing the Last Waltz as a vanity project for Robertson, they may not have had much to contribute to the interview segments. Nonetheless, that's no excuse for the concert footage itself focusing so heavily on the lip-synching Robertson while Garth Hudson and Richard Manuel are practically invisible.
2. What is Neil Diamond doing in this movie? I don't care what kind of relationship Diamond had with Robbie Robertson. Whatever his merits, Diamond's Brill Building pop style sticks out from the other roots-oriented performers like an unwelcome surprise in the punchbowl. We always skip this segment, but for Diamond's fans, it's probably the only segment of the movie worth watching.
3. Many reputed-to-be-great performances are omitted. Apparently Scorcese and his crew were as stoned as the musicians, and the cameras of the day required constant re-loading that disrupted the filming.
4. If you are not a fan of the Band, you will find this movie long and boring.
5. The extras, with only Robertson and Scorcese participating, are reasonably interesting but but self-serving. Unfortunately Danko and Manuel had passed away, Helm was too embittered to participate, and Hudson, well, who knows about him.
For reference the guest list includes:
Ronnie Hawkins
Neil Young
Dr. John
Paul Butterfield
Eric Clapton
Muddy Waters
Joni Mitchell
Van Morrison
Bob Dylan
Overall a remarkable record of great performances by some of the most gifted A-list musicians of the day. And a note to Levon Helm who so bitterly hates this movie and resents that he's never made a dime off it: It does introduce new generations to the music and the people who played it. I know who you are because of this movie. My kids know who you are because of this movie. We listen to your new stuff and hope to come to one of your Midnight Rambles because of this movie. So maybe it's not as bad as all that.
Movie Review: Haven't reviewed the album release yet, but...
Summary: 5 Stars
"The Last Waltz" (thankfully) became my new 'phase' movie, replacing "Saving Private Ryan", but thanks to the Band it will become something more than a phase and certainly something that will last a lot longer. I first saw the movie because of Scorsese, then got into it because of the Band, and now I am only into it for the Band. As great as the movie is, as strangely comforting as it is to hear music like this, and as thankful as I am that it does exist...I have several reservations about it that I feel people are overlooking. First of all, if you've heard the soundtrack album, then you know that these songs have been edited down SEVERELY for the movie, and not just the verses of the songs. They cut out several of Robbie's most moving and lengthy guitar solos ever, and even had the audacity to excise some passages from "Mystery Train". Of coarse, the greatest travesties are the Band songs "It Makes No Difference" and "The Shape I'm In", and I guess it would have killed people to sit through Richard's final verse of the latter. It is an exciting film to watch, so maybe people just overlook this because of that, but this is a music film and how many fans do you know that would have complained about the movie being a half an hour longer?! Other qualms of mine include the fact that the Band simply don't do enough of their own material. Now that I've heard all of their albums, and got familiar with all of the other great songs and material that they had, I am inclined to think that the records are a more rewarding listening experience (although Robbie's guitar never sounded rougher). Richard has the best voice ever, and it's obvious that we have a special rythmn section and guitarist, so why do they treat the show like it's for the guests instead of them? Maybe Richard couldn't have sang all night, but where are the great Band songs? If you don't understand what I'm saying, just imagine if "Rock of Ages" would have been filmed. The Band had great songs, and I know Robbie said that it was originally supposed to be just them, so what gives? And a question for Scorsese the genius--why do we get a minute and a half intro to what looks like a rocking version of "Chest Fever" and never see any more of it? Why weren't the other film performances included? So what if the whole performance wasn't filmed, or if it looked bad, they could have squeezed in "Acadian Driftwood"! What a heartbreaker! I mean, if only I could have seen "Time to Kill". I'm not going to gripe about Robbie's face being all over the thing--I like Robbie, and frankly the rest of the guys looked like they had been hibernating for ages and were sad that the crew woke them up for interviews. Robbie is cool, even if he destroyed the Band's road career, and at least he talks without trying to remember where he is! But I will say that this is the best concert film ever--I mean the music rocks (artistically too boot), the camera angles are right, and the whole evening looked magical and I feel sad that I wasn't alive back then to get there and see it. It's an essential purchase without a doubt, but a bit of a letdown for the Band's sake. Too many guest artists (in the movie). However, the film contain's one moment that no other rock film can beat. Turn up the riveting and terrifying performance of "Stage Fright" right after Rick shouts 'just let him take it from the top!' and prepare to be rattled by one of the loudest and most incredible guitar solos ever filmed. Intense isn't a strong enough word. So at least we have this preservation of the Band's strength, power, and excellence on film, although the whole idea of never seeing the Band perform again is tear-jerking.Movie Review: NOT Fake Widescreen!!
Summary: 5 Stars
The Last Waltz DVD is not in "fake widescreen" as a previous reviewer claims. The Last Waltz is presented in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio of the original theatrical presentation. It was filmed "flat", to use cinematography parlance. This is where the film is shot on the entire 1.33:1 film frame, but for theatrical exhibition, the top and bottom of the frame are matted out, producing the desired 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Last Waltz director Martin Scorsese and the cinematographers were fully aware of this fact and the film was framed accordingly. The DVD presentation is the way that the film was intended to be seen by director Martin Scorsese. You do not "see less of The Last Waltz than ever before." This is exactly how the movie was seen in its original theatrical exhibition. This is no deception or censorship. It is simply presenting the film in it's original theatrical format. The other movies mentioned, Touch of Evil and Time Bandits, were filmed likewise. Although Time Bandits actually had an aspect ratio of 1.66:1, not 1.85:1.
The package does not "lie to the consumer." If you'll notice, the paragraph states "Depending on how the film was shot". Movies filmed in a scope format such as Panavision, Cinemascope etc. would lose nearly half of their picture information to cropping in pan and scan format. With movies like The Last Waltz, Touch of Evil and Time Bandits, the term "Pan and Scan" is actually a misnomer. Full Frame would be more accurate.
Movies are filmed either scope or flat. Examples of scope movies are Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Lawrence of Arabia, Forrest Gump, Braveheart, Alien (original by Ridley Scott), Chinatown, Ben-Hur, Pulp Fiction, Ghostbusters, Jaws, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Planet of the Apes, Blazing Saddles, Die Hard, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Cool Hand Luke, Deliverance, Apocalypse Now and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Compare widescreen versions of any of these films with pan and scan to see a dramatic difference: loss of about 45% of the picture to the left and/or right of the pan and scan frame.
Examples of flat films are The Exorcist, Psycho, Easy Rider, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, The Godfather, Young Frankenstein, Goodfellas, The Last Waltz, Annie Hall, The Last Temptation of Christ, The Birds, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, Jurassic Park, Schindler's List, Amistad, Saving Private Ryan, A.I., Jerry Maguire, Aliens (sequel by James Cameron) or just about any movie with the 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Compare widescreen versions of these movies with full frame and you'll see that there is more information on the top and bottom in the full frame version. This is no movie studio or industry conspiracy, however. It's simply the way these movies were shot and intended to be seen. Ask Woody Allen why he always shoots his movies flat, or ask Steven Spielberg why doesn't shoot movies in scope anymore. These movies are framed for the 1.85:1 aspect ratio and are intended to be seen that way. Watching them open matte or full frame destroys the cinematography by altering the aspect ratio they were filmed for.
For more information on widescreen and aspect ratios, there are a myriad of resources available such as the Widescreen Advocacy Page
Movie Review: The best rock film of all time.
Summary: 5 Stars
Listening to Martin Scorsese's interview on this DVD, it's no surprise how beautiful The Last Waltz turned out to be. Scorsese had always loved music and used it well in his films, and The Last Waltz should be required viewing for every music video director today.Scorsese can cut maniacally with the best of them (witness Mean Streets and Bringing Out the Dead), but on The Last Waltz, he wisely recedes into the background and lets his subjects speak for themselves. And the subject is music -- lots of it, some of the best ever recorded, and the film also catches the musicians responsible at the height of their powers.
I wasn't even that big of a fan of The Band, but this film changed me -- and I can't say any other visual work has ever achieved that in me to this degree. The Last Waltz shows The Band was that rare coming together of equals. What other rock group can boast of having four vocalists of such unique persuasions? And instrumentally The Band was really the cream of the crop -- Levon Helm and Rick Danko's irresistible grooves; Garth Hudson and Richard Manuel's dual keyboards (not to mention their more unusual instrumental contributions); and Robbie Robertson shows his fieriest playing in this film -- his gutsy playing overshadowed even Eric Clapton (who was beginning to show his more 'professorial' side at this point).
And matched against the guest stars, the group achieved pure magic. My favourite number has to be the matching of Helm's gritty, masculine voice and Richard Manuel's bonkers drumming against Emmylou Harris' angelic croon in "Evangeline", but it could easily have been Van Morrison's devastating "Caravan", which seemed to stun even The Band itself, Neil Young with an aching rendition of "Helpless", or the mass gathering on "I Shall Be Released". On The Band's own numbers "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down", "It Makes No Difference" and "Ophelia" were all tremendously moving, while the two studio numbers ("The Weight" and the almost mythical, gorgeous "Waltz" ending) were simply magnificent.
Scorsese's handling of the documentary sections shows the ultimate in bottom-line storytelling. Most filmmakers would have raised eyebrows at the concept of jump-cutting interview audio without regard to image, but Scorsese triumphs by making these sections tight and meaningful so that the awkwardness of the jump-cuts becomes a non-issue. And the celebrated shooting -- meticulously planned and storyboarded, featuring some of the best camera, lighting and design talent in the industry -- shows how concert films should be done. As Scorsese says, no need for stock audience cutaways, fast montages or thrashing bodies; just powerful music, impassioned performances and a camera that knows where to be at any given point.
This film is, to me, in a class all by itself -- other concert films such as Woodstock and The Monterey Pop Festival have tended to leave me indifferent (even if I do like some of their artists). The Last Waltz is the hands-down winner on all fronts -- visual, musical, and narrative.
Movie Review: Don't Miss This Classic Concert Film
Summary: 5 Stars
Possibly the Greatest of all Rock Concert Films.Until I saw The Last Waltz, I was somewhat ignorant of The Band's music. I never cared for their classic hits, and I dismissed their critical acclaim as requiring a taste that I didn't care to acquire. After seeing this film, I now regard The Band as one of the great groups in the history of Rock.
On Thanksgiving Day, 1976, The Band got together at San Francisco's Winterland auditorium to play what was supposed to have been their last live performance. To go out with style, The Band enlisted the talents of a dizzying array of guest artists. And, for good measure, they hired Martin Scorcese to film the thing.
The film switches between live concert footage, interviews, and a few numbers that were recorded at an MGM soundstage. The music is the highlight of The Last Waltz. Sometimes Jazz fans say that audio recordings rarely capture the magic of live Jazz. Similarly, there was a certain "magic" to The Band's music that was rarely captured before this film was made. Career-topping performances of The Band's now-classic repertoire, combined with first rate guest performances from legends like Muddy Waters, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, and Eric Clapton (to name just a few) made for a fine evening of music. Fans of all styles of music will appreciate the mature musicianship of a group that had spent the previous 16 years on the road together. Given The Band's level of playing, plus the great performances from the invited guests, and the fact that Martin Scorcese was in charge of filming the show, it's no wonder that the film turned out so well.
Martin Scorcese himself interviews the members of The Band. Most of these interviews are interesting, too. This is particularly true when the guys start talking about the history of Rock and their respective musical influences. The music is so good, though, that you're almost always glad that the music is starting again.
As you would expect, the DVD offers a marked improvement over the old VHS format in both image and sound quality. The image is widescreen, and crystal clear. All of the music has been remixed using today's best technology. The concert footage has a deep, rich, warm sound. The DVD also offers special features (including a selectable 5.1 digital audio track, for those who have the system to support it). For the DVD, original guitarist and songwriter Robbie Robertson has written some great liner notes with the kind of trivia craved by people who actually read liner notes. Among other things, Robertson tells us how they chose the unusual combination of guests, which was "to pay respect to some of the musical influences that inspired the whole era," and Robertson also reveals that before the show "the crowd had no idea who was performing besides The Band." Talk about being pleasantly surprised!
There are certainly some flaws in this movie, but it is still a truly great concert film.
IMPORTANT NOTE for FANS of RINGO and RON WOOD: Their names are listed in the credits, but there's almost none of these guys in the movie.