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And if you have Blue-Ray, get it in Blue-ray. I already had this in DVD and it was the first Blue-Ray I purchased after buying a Blue Ray player. Its one of the best concert DVD's ever. Not necessarily worth the upgrade but a low price.
I know much of it is live and over 30 years old now but it seemed like all the remaster did was turn up the loudness. I got the Sherbourn amp recently and was looking to hear amazing things out of this blu ray and I was disappointed. I was pretty disappointed to say the least. I heard the bluray had completely remastered sound, re-engineered by the surviving band members so I jumped at the chance to test out my new theater system with a classic. This is one of my all time favorite concert movies. Movies that don't translate well: most comedies (what's the point in spending the extra $10 on a clearer copy of Blazing Saddles)., old TV series (stuck in 4:3), films that are not remastered. All mid to high end gear. My theater system is a Rotel processor, Sherbourn 5 channel amp, Jamo Concerto series surround, and a Bay Audio sub.
I have been selectively adding to my BR collection only movies that have visual and audio qualities that would benefit from the increased resolution and uncompressed audio technology. That's a person who is obsessed with high-quality audio reproduction. It definitely has that Martin Scorcese style that has become so well known and the talent assembled is staggering. It's only slightly better than the DVD. I'm what many consider an audiophile. This is usually achieved through high end hardware. Movies like Sin City, Kill Bill, Apocalypto, Snow Falling On Cedars and The Dark Knight are great because they are visually and audibly dramatic and their filmed qualities are sufficient to translate well into digital format. I think that this movie fits into that category of movies that are just as good on DVD unfortunately.
Levon Helm, the drummer, you get to see how he holds his drumsticks with the traditional grip, but the left-hand drumstick grip-outward. Great movie, I watched it and all of the extras and spent a bunch of time reading up on the band and their albums. Maybe we'll never know. While The Band can come off as a bit dull, old-worldly on the recordings, watching them is great because they all really look like they're having a great time. While the musical add-ons are fantastic, you would wonder why non-concert bits are included in a film document about a concert. The film was directed by Martin Scorsese and shows The Band playing a gala "final" concert (they reformed without Robbie Robertson a few years later anyway) that marked a long break from touring and recording.
Garth Hudson, nutty and classical-trained, is not seen often. But I still don't have an answer to the question that has been plaguing me: so many people are seen playing Fender Stratocasters in the film (Robbie Robertson, Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Ron Wood), why do they picture a Fender Telecaster as the main symbol on the cover. Robbie Robertson, well-known from his later career, is the only Bandmember who doesn't sing, despite the fine, raspy singing voice we all know him to possess. The party was held in San Francisco, they served a turkey dinner since it was Thanksgiving, and they had actual waltzing. The bands played from 8:00PM to 2:30AM. The editing of the film is strange, with the last number of the evening played first, interspersed with interview dialogue, and then non-concert bits, such as "The Weight" recorded with the Staples Singers (great, great, great), and "Evangeline" with Emmylou Harris (great, great, great).
Great scene with The Band, Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, the Canadian music mafia, singing Young's "Helpless", a song about "a town in north Ontario." That's Ontario in Canada, not Ontario in California.
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. 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. Which leads to the criticisms:1. We listen to your new stuff and hope to come to one of your Midnight Rambles because of this movie. 3. One hears different motivations for Robertson's decision. Maybe he wanted to concentrate on his movie-star ambitions. I know who you are because of this movie.
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. 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 always skip this segment, but for Diamond's fans, it's probably the only segment of the movie worth watching. 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. Whatever his merits, Diamond's Brill Building pop style sticks out from the other roots-oriented performers like an unwelcome surprise in the punchbowl.
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. Many reputed-to-be-great performances are omitted. Maybe he felt, with punk and disco on the horizon, that the Band's time was coming to an end. 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. It's remarkable to watch the Band accompany their guests with skill and respect.
The extras, with only Robertson and Scorcese participating, are reasonably interesting but but self-serving. 4. 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. Maybe he didn't want to continue if the quality couldn't be maintained. 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. Unfortunately Danko and Manuel had passed away, Helm was too embittered to participate, and Hudson, well, who knows about him.
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. 5. If you are not a fan of the Band, you will find this movie long and boring. For reference the guest list includes:Ronnie HawkinsNeil YoungDr.
My kids know who you are because of this movie. I don't care what kind of relationship Diamond had with Robbie Robertson. Contrary to appearances, however, Robertson's microphone was turned off because he's really a very poor singer. 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.
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. What is Neil Diamond doing in this movie. JohnPaul ButterfieldEric ClaptonMuddy WatersJoni MitchellVan MorrisonBob DylanOverall a remarkable record of great performances by some of the most gifted A-list musicians of the day. So maybe it's not as bad as all that.
The best rock and roll concert movie ever made now on a format so crisp and clean you can see the rock in Neil's nose.
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