Patti Smith, The Talking Heads, The Beatles, Bob Dylan at the Aero
by Andre Soares
A week of rock ‘n roll features and documentaries will be presented at the American Cinematheque’s Aero Theatre in Santa Monica beginning August 28. Among those are Jonathan Demme’s Neil Young: Heart of Gold, Richard Lester’s A Hard Day’s Night, and the Los Angeles premiere of Patti Smith: Dream of Life (above), directed by Steven Sebring.
Schedule and synopses from the American Cinematheque’s press release:
Thursday, August 28 - 7:30 PM
NEIL YOUNG: HEART OF GOLD, 2006, Paramount, 103 min. Academy-Award-winning director Jonathan Demme beautifully captures Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Neil Young at work in this acclaimed documentary. With the help of his wife, Peggi, country star Emmylou Harris, steel guitarist Ben Keith and others, Young prepares and presents the performance of a lifetime at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry.
STOP MAKING SENSE, 1984, Palm Pictures, 88 min. Jonathan Demme revolutionized the art of shooting rock concerts with this innovative and lively record of the Talking Heads. The film expertly captures the music’s energy, fusing cinema with performance to create something more than the sum of its parts. Artistically ambitious, filled with joyous but controlled energy, this is considered by many critics to be the best concert film of all time.
Friday, August 29 - 7:30 PM
L.A. Premiere! PATTI SMITH: DREAM OF LIFE, 2008, Palm Pictures, 109 min. Twelve years in the making, the first film directed by fashion photographer Steven Sebring stitches together layer upon layer of human experience to paint a portrait of Patti Smith, the artist as a tireless and dynamic worker for music, poetry, peace, family and friends.
Saturday, August 30 - 7:30 PM
A HARD DAY’S NIGHT, 1964, Miramax, 85 min. Director Richard Lester’s brilliant, carefree comedy captured the early Beatles at their best, setting the tone for the ’60s revolution. From the restless, handheld camerawork and sleight-of-hand jumpcut editing, writer Alun Owen’s surreal day-in-the-life script and George Martin’s sprightly score (both Oscar-nominated) to the Beatles themselves, this is the essence of the monochromatic early ’60s.
IMAGINE: JOHN LENNON, 1988, Warner Bros., 100 min. Dir. Andrew Solt. A documentary about former Beatle John Lennon that contains extensive material from Yoko Ono’s personal collection as well as interviews with Ono, Lennon’s first wife, Cynthia, and sons Julian and Sean. Narrated in Lennon’s own voice, IMAGINE was taken from the 240 hours of personal film and video from the star’s private collection. A unique film that gives fans a look at the enigmatic pop revolutionary that is unavailable anywhere else.
Sunday, August 31 - 7:30 PM
THE LAST WALTZ, 1978, MGM Repertory, 117 min. "It Started as a Concert. It Became a Celebration. Now It’s a Legend." On Thanksgiving Day 1976, 5,000 cheering fans gathered for the historic farewell concert of The Band. Martin Scorsese provides fascinating interviews with Band members, but the film’s real hook is the stage show: A rotation of rock legends that includes Van Morrison, Joni Mitchell, Paul Butterfield, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, and Neil Young join The Band in one of the greatest concert films ever made.
FESTIVAL EXPRESS, 2003, ThinkFilm, 90 min. Dir. Bob Smeaton & Frank Cvitanovich. Set in 1970, FESTIVAL EXPRESS was a multi-band (including Janis Joplin, The Band and The Grateful Dead) extravaganza. What made it unique was that it was portable; for five days the bands and performers lived, slept, rehearsed and did countless unmentionable things aboard a customized train that traveled from Toronto to Calgary to Winnipeg, with each stop culminating in a mega-concert. FESTIVAL EXPRESS combines long-lost archival material with contemporary interviews to document a little-known but seminal moment in rock history.
Thursday, September 4 - 7:30 PM
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE MIRROR: BOB DYLAN LIVE AT THE NEWPORT FOLK FESTIVAL, 2007, MLF, 83 min. This brand-new film from Academy Award-winning director Murray Lerner documents the remarkably swift metamorphosis of Bob Dylan from scrawny, Guthrie-inspired protest singer to Ray-Banned rock icon in just three years. The footage has been newly transferred from the original negative with matching audio restoration.
BOB DYLAN ‘65 REVISITED, 2007, Pennebaker Films, 60 min. Dir. D.A. Pennebaker. An acclaimed new film on Bob Dylan drawn from countless hours of DON’T LOOK BACK outtakes, it includes ultra-rare footage of Dylan writing and rehearsing material for his 1966 masterpiece "Blonde on Blonde." Los Angeles Times critic Robert Hilburn describes the new film simply: "The greatest rock movie ever — just got better."
Ticket Prices:
General Admission: $10
Student/Senior (with ID): $8
American Cinematheque Member: $7
American Cinematheque at the Max Palevsky Aero Theatre
1328 Montana Avenue, Santa Monica, CA 90403
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