Sympathy for the Devil
It's glorious to watch the Rolling Stones at the height of their powers. These days, their personal mythologies and 'legendary' status overshadow their musicianship, but Jean-Luc Godard's first English film bottles the lightning of the Stones' craft. In long, observational studio shots, we see them experiment with instrumentation, tempo and phrasing... It's like being there, give or take the odd visible boom mic.
But the Stones weren't operating in a cultural vacuum, and Godard juxtaposes the studio scenes with abstract skits exploring radical ideas. Back in 68, people really did believe that shitty graffiti slogans and spoken word happenings could spark revolution! So we have Black Panthers, a woman named ‘Eve Democracy', a dude reading MEIN KAMPF in a porn bookshop, and a posh voiceover reciting pulp fiction. Touching, but unintentionally hilarious.
Things got even more farcical at the London premiere, where Godard discovered his producer had included the final version of 'Sympathy For The Devil' over the closing credits and changed the film's name from ONE PLUS ONE. Incensed, he offered the audience their money back, called them fascists when they demurred, and punched out the producer, starting an all-in melee. Someone should make a movie about that!
Format: DVD
Mood: Nostalgic
Keywords: the rolling stones, DVD, Jean-Luc Godard
Random Entries:
Subscribe to our e-newsletter for weekly updates and exclusive stuff:
Browse our guide to Sydney by interest
Sydney Events Calendar
Select a date to see what's on in Sydney
Browse our guide to Sydney by keyword
Browse our guide to Sydney by weekly issue
Working