I have never seen Woodstock?

okay, the only ones featured in the film that I like are the Who and Sly. Hendrix = eh, allright, but seen/heard it a million times.

otm. This is the best documentary on hippies I've seen. And yeah, not all the music is great, but I will never get tired of watching Santana trip. Also ace is Sly Stone's performance.

“Writing Seminar in Film: Discovering the Rock and Roll Sublime”

Filmmakers have tried to capture the essence of rock and roll since the early 1950s. What is it about this form of music that has made it irresistible to directors as interesting and as disparate as Stanley Kubrick, Francis Ford Coppola, Alan Parker and Dennis Hopper? As we explore the question of how to frame our reactions to a popular cultural phenomenon in rigorous intellectual terms, we will briefly touch on definitions of beauty and the sublime in authors such as Longinus, Edmund Burke, Nietzsche, Ultimately, these theoretical considerations will merely form the frame: the main work of the class will consist of engaging in understanding representations of a rock-and-roll aesthetic on film. We will view films like Apocalypse Now, A Clockwork Orange, and The Wall. The class requires active participation; you will also attend weekly mandatory screenings outside of class, keep a journal and participate in frequent in-class writing exercises, in addition to writing several polished essays.

yeah i love how they edited that so it's like everyone's already packed up and left and jimi's still wailing away without a care. richie havens and santanas sets are inspired too.

So I taped it, but didn't watch it right away because it was on late at night. But afterwards, I was a little afraid to finally view it for the first time because John Norris did some kind of disclaimer at the beginning which said something like "the film contains nudity, drug references and other material which may be sensitive to some viewers - viewer discretion is advised - mtv does not support or condone the abuse of illegal substances" and it gave me that chilling "FBI warning" type of scare that kept me away from watching it for a few months, but I did a few months later and I became a fan of nearly every band in the movie within the next year because of it - especially The Who, Sly, Santana and Hendrix. The songs in this movie were the first Hendrix and Who songs I had ever heard, so I consider it a pretty special film for me personally.

yeah i love how they edited that so it's like everyone's already packed up and left and jimi's still wailing away without a care.

There are clearly less people there for Hendrix than any other performer in the movie, so I'm sure it was the truth. I love this concept for some reason - of Jimi getting so lost in his shredding that half the audience loses interest and starts packing up.

the woodstock dvd screws up the split screens (when only one section is on it makes it fill the screen)

I was HIGHLY disappointed by this. Directors cut my ass. (Oh wait, I might be thinking of the VHS version.. I don't remember..)

I think I must've fast-forwarded through this part. Especially if it was in-between CSN and Joan Baez.

-- Shakey Mo Collier

Well, you certainly can't be faulted for THAT! Only the wretched John Sebastian was more insufferable than Joan Baez. (But that Port-O-San guy really is worth seeing.)

Port-o-San guy rules and the friendly copper too. And who can argue against the "skinny-dipping is a beautiful thing" hippie godess?

hahahaha!

haha, I kept thinking "what a square" while he was singing. And did he really forget that one lyric, or was he fishing for audience participation?

The film makers and distributor were sued by the man who was interviewed while cleaning the Port-O-San portable latrines, on the grounds of mental anguish, embarrassment, public ridicule, and invasion of privacy. An appellate court opinion in this lawsuit may be read at Taggart v. Wadleigh-Maurice, Ltd., 489 F.2d 434 (3d Cir. 1973).

btw, here's some background info on the whole event:

http://www.woodstock69.com/wsrprnt1.htm

I also think that Arlo Guthrie song is great, but it's just upsetting that they couldn't show the actual performance of it for whatever reason. (And on the soundtrack, that version wasn't even recorded at Woodstock.)

The worst performance in the whole movie is definitely Country Joe & The Fish performing whatever the hell they're trying to do.. It's labelled as "Rock And Soul Music" on the soundtrack.

I've got the entire weekend's PPV broadcast on VHS if you'd like...

people actually harrassed this guy for being in that film? ;-(

Not that they're a classic band or anything - far from it - but their gold-lame schtick is almost a relief, placed in the middle of all this peace 'n' love.

the woodstock dvd screws up the split screens (when only one section is on it makes it fill the screen)

So, on the off chance that someone has bought the latest version. Does it still do this?

when Sha Na Na come on its like punks somehow happened years too early; it's a total disconnect from everything else there. love them. it's a great movie, despite the baez.

I watched the American Experience Woodstock episode last night (which I didn't realize was American Experience-connected until it started). Worth seeing, even if you've seen the film more than once. The musical clips are comparatively minimal; it's about the four guys who engineered the show, the logistics, etc. The two highlights for me were both courtesy old people: when, after the food ran out, the local citizens of Bethel started gathering and hauling food over to the site (that's in the film, I think, but only briefly), and when Max Yasgur--whose farm has just been pretty much destroyed--addresses the crowd warmly and supportively.