20, 30, 40: A Trio of Concert Films

20, 30, 40: A Trio of Concert Films

June 8-21, 2007

A program of music obsession captured on film by two of the medium’s greatest masters and one of music’s most enigmatic icons! 2007 is a staggering year for anniversaries with three of the genre’s finest examples to toast: Prince’s self-directed SIGN O' THE TIMES turns twenty, Sweden’s Lasse Hallström’s pop infectious ABBA: THE MOVIE hits thirty, and D.A. Pennebaker’s marvelous chronicle of Bob Dylan DON’T LOOK BACK reaches its fortieth year on the screen. Can twenty, thirty or forty years change our perspective of these classics, or do they stand the test of time? We’ve judged them ourselves, now it’s your turn. Join us in celebrating the “birthdays” of this trio of concert films!

 

ABBA: The Movie

Jun 11 - Jun 13, 2007

Lasse Hallstrom, Sweden/Australia, 1977, 35mm, 96 min

Revisit the sweet harmonies and infectious charms of Agnetha, Bjorn, Benny, and Anni-Frid! In one of his first films, director Lasse Hallstrom (CHOCOLAT) follows the fun-loving Swedish pop sensation, ABBA, on an Australian tour at the height of the group's success. Great concert performances including the hits "Take a Chance on Me," "Fernando," "Dancing Queen," "Mamma Mia" and others are intercut with reactions from adoring fans, backstage footage, and a subplot about a radio disc jockey desperately trying to catch up to the super group for an interview. ABBA: THE MOVIE is rarely screened and not available on home video. Don't miss the catchy music, outrageous stage costumes, and, according to the 1977 press, the "sexiest bottom in Europe!"

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Sign O' the Times

Sponsored by KBCS Radio

Jun 08 - Jun 10, 2007

Prince, USA, 1987, 35mm, 84 min

SIGN O' THE TIMES is the kind of concert film that only Prince (writer and director) could have made. Filmed at the Rotterdam Music Hall and in his hometown of Minneapolis, Prince doesn't limit himself to concert movie conventions. Instead he combines his energetic performance footage with narrative vignettes, dance interludes and even a music video featuring Sheena Easton. Strangely enigmatic, characteristically compact and always decked out in the most colorful bizarre outfits, Prince displays his undeniable talent for both songwriting and performing. Songs in the film include "U Got the Look," "Little Red Corvette" and "Hot Thing."

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Don't Look Back

Sponsored by Emerald City Guitars, KEXP and Easy Street Records

Jun 15 - Jun 21, 2007

D.A. Pennebaker, USA, 1967, 35mm, 96min

D.A. Pennebaker's cinema verite account of Bob Dylan's 1965 tour of England has long been regarded as a landmark film. Pennebaker edited twenty hours of film down to the 90-minute final version. The result not only captured Dylan at a crucial moment in his career (he had just "gone electric") but also proved that the behind-the-scenes life of the rock star was as compelling as what he did on stage. The film is an intimate portrait of Dylan; we see him drunk in hotel rooms, wrangling with Joan Baez and berating the press. He tells one Time Magazine journalist, "I know more about what you do just by looking at you than you'll ever be able to know about me." DON'T LOOK BACK captures the twenty-three year-old Dylan, an enigmatic combination of talented performer and restless individual -- a man who refuses to acknowledge or accept the labels put on either himself or his music.

"Easily one of the best documentaries on any subject ever made, it is also one of the most cinematically influential." -Craig Marine, San Francisco Examiner

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