Tommy the film 1975
I know this isn’t a gig, but hey I’ve got a programme for it (pictured) and its The Who, so I just couldn’t let it pass without writing something about it.
In 1975 The Who featured in 1975 musical film based upon their 1969 rock opera album “Tommy”. The movie was directed by Ken Russell and featured a star-studded cast, including members of the Who themselves (Roger Daltrey plays the title role). Other cast members include Ann-Margret, Oliver Reed, Eric Clapton, Tina Turner, Elton John, Arthur Brown and Jack Nicholson. We all trooped off to the cinema to see the film, and pretty good fun it was too. It also held particular local interest in the north east as it features The Black Angels, the local hells angels chapter, who play a group of hell angels in the movie. It is very OTT, silly, and outrageous; but then what else could you expect when you consider that this was Ken Russell, The Who and “Tommy”. 🙂
“One thing is sure: there has never been a movie musical quite like Tommy, a weird, crazy, wonderfully excessive version of The Who’s rock opera. Ken Russell is a film maker (Women in Love, The Devils) who glories in the kind of heightened visual absurdity that Tommy both invites and requires.” (Time magazine).
Townshend, speaking to Rolling Stone on the Tommy concept in 1969: “Tommy’s real self represents the aim – God – and the illusory self is the teacher; life, the way, the path and all this. The coming together of these are what make him aware. They make him see and hear and speak so he becomes a saint who everybody flocks to. The boy’s life starts to represent the whole nature of humanity – we all have this self-imposed deaf, dumb and blindness – but this isn’t something I’m over heavy on”
Posts Tagged ‘movie’
26 Dec
Tommy the film 1975
18 Sep
Nick Cave 20,000 Days On Earth Live Link Up Tyneside Cinema 17th Sep 2014
Nick Cave 20,000 Days On Earth Live Link Up Tyneside Cinema 17th Sep 2014
Last night Laura and I went to the Tyneside Cinema to take part in a live link up to London’s Barbican for “20,000 Days On Earth”. Artists Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard have created this film which follows 24 hours of the (approx) 20,000th day of Nick Cave’s life. The film takes an imaginative and in-depth look at the mysterious and charismatic figure of Cave, exploring his life, his art and his creative process. This authentic and compelling movie gives us a glimpse of how Nick Cave approaches writing, work, and music. What you begin to understand is that there is no real distinction between Cave and his art. During the movie, he talks quite a bit about transforming himself by creating his own mythology and narrative, based on characters, thoughts and memories from his life. His life has become a project, which he lives 24/7, and the film gave us a glimpse of a single day in that life. It is set partly in his adopted home town of Brighton, and includes clips of rehearsals with the Bad Seeds in France, Cave’s manic live performance, and visiting his personal archive. Guests including Kylie and Ray Winston pop up briefly to give their own perspectives of Nick. Cave talks about how he lives for the performance and how he believes that, when it works, a live concert can become a truly transformative experience for him, the band and the audience. 
The screening of the film was followed by a live performance by Nick Cave, Warren Ellis and Barry Adamson, plus a Q&A with with those three and directors Forsyth & Pollard, all broadcast live from London’s Barbican centre, and linked to 150 cinemas across the UK. The Tyneside was sold out for this special event, and rightly so. We all left understanding a little more about the enigma that is Nick Cave; you couldn’t fail to be impressed by the passion, intensity and belief with which he approaches his art, and the uncompromising and relentless work ethic of the man.
8 Jun
Pulp: Life, Death and Supermarkets (with live Q and A from Sheffield City Hall) Tyneside Cinema 6th June 2014
Pulp: Life, Death and Supermarkets (with live Q and A from Sheffield City Hall) Tyneside Cinema 6th June 2014
Things weren’t looking too good for Pulp back in 1988. After a disastrous farewell show, they packed their bags and relocated to London from Sheffield. Some 25 years and 10 million album sales later, the band returned home for an emotional farewell show. Rather than making a conventional concert movie, award-winning film-maker Florian Habicht uses this momentous occasion as his backdrop for a more intimate documentary. Setting up a series of artfully arranged tableaux, he presents a fascinating exploration of the close and enduring relationship between Pulp and the “common people” of Sheffield. At this charming and insightful film’s centre is the band’s charismatic, endlessly quotable lyricist and frontman Jarvis Cocker. (From the publicity for the film).
Starring Jarvis Cocker, Mark Webber, Candida Doyle, Nick Banks, Steve Mackey and the people of Sheffield. Directed by Florian Habicht.
‘Florian Habicht’s concert movie follows Jarvis Cocker and his bandmates as they prepare to mark their 25th anniversary as Britpop royalty with a concert in their native Sheffield. Songs will be sung, stories will be told, and pies will be eaten, because the only way to fully understand Pulp is to hang out in the town that birthed the band. “Sing along with the common people” isn’t just a lyric – it’s a mission statement.’ (NowToronto.com). “Fittingly, Florian Habicht’s affectionate documentary tells the story of the band from the streets of Sheffield with the help of friends, family and fans, aged and youthful alike (one wears a T-shirt proclaiming: “I am a common person so **** you”), all of whom have their own stories to tell.” (The Guardian)
The UK release was last night, 6th June 2014, and the Sheffield premiere, with the band, local stars and filmmakers in attendance was broadcast live to 90 cinemas across the UK from Sheffield City Hall. Laura and I went to the screening at the Tyneside Cinema.
The event started with a live feed from outside Sheffield City Hall, a choir of Yorkshire ladies singing “Common People” on the steps of the Hall, and the audience mingling and making their way to their seats. Soon we see Jarvis and the rest of Pulp arrive. The screen at Sheffield lists the towns and cities to which the film is being beamed out, each one followed by a little Jarvis joke, some rhyming…”Doncaster….Clap faster….Tyneside….You shall have a fishy….” (lots of cheers from our home crowd). The film is introduced by Director Florian who brings Liberty, a young Sheffield girl who features in the movie as one of the “stars” from the people of Sheffield, up on stage to say a few words.
The film itself centres around the farewell 2012 Pulp gig at Sheffield Arena, the day of the gig and, most of all, the people of Sheffield. There are clips from the concert, but not many in comparison with other concert films. Most of the time we are taken around Sheffield, meeting the people and talking about their personal connections with Pulp. A group of older people sing a lovely rendition of “Help The Aged”. Jarvis, and each band member, talk a little about themselves, their connection with Sheffield and the importance of holding their last gig there for the people they grew up with. A paperseller outside the market tells us why he likes Pulp. Liberty listens to “Disco 2000″in her garden.
This works well, and paints a picture of a band returning to, reflecting on, and respecting their roots.
After the film, Paul Morley hosted a live Q & A session with the band, and Florian, talking largely about the movie, the concept behind it, and how it came about. At one point, Javis asks everyone in the audience who features in the movie, to stand up. Almost half the crowd in the City Hall do so.
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