Utopia film 202012/18/2023 “I would like to think that I’m finding something, some bits of hope that all is not as bad as it often seems,” he replied. Those first impressions of the “Psycho Killer” guy linger: During a SXSW Q&A in 2019, Byrne was asked about the “bleak outlook” of his early work, and whether or not he feels like he’s moved toward one of greater optimism. That any of these people might be looked at as a beacon of positivity in trying times feels like a relatively recent development. The one with the longest shadow is the young, twitchy beanpole at the forefront of Talking Heads, his intensity and his aloofness intimating autobiography into songs like “ Psycho Killer” and “ Warning Sign.” There’s the David Byrne who liked trying on costumes at the height of the band’s power ( including some he shouldn’t have): A big suit for Stop Making Sense, a cowboy hat for True Stories, the spectacles of a music-video televangelist who still persuades people that they want to hear “ Once In A Lifetime”’s inimitable studio flourishes in a concert setting-even though every single live version (including the one in American Utopia) fails to get great until the last “same as it ever was.” 2020 gives us conflicting Byrnes: The one moonlighting in the field of sanguine journalism with Reasons To Be Cheerful, and the egomaniacal asshole depicted by Talking Heads drummer Chris Frantz in the pages of his memoir, Remain In Love. There are many David Byrnes in the public imagination. “I kind of like their version better, and I didn’t know how they did it,” he concludes. Inclusion.” When he says this in the movie, we’re no longer looking at his back-there’s still a good deal of distance between Byrne and the camera, but the POV has swung to the front of the stage, so we can see his face as he talks. “Their version seems to be about welcome, inviting everyone over. He mentions that the choir didn’t change the lyrics or the melody of “Everybody’s Coming To My House”-yet to Byrne’s ears, they gave the song a completely new meaning. Not only because his earliest statements about the tour evoked memories of Talking Heads and Jonathan Demme’s monumental concert film, Stop Making Sense, but also because the way the show is blocked and decorated creates an open invitation for a filmmaker to both document and fill in the spaces. I have to wonder if Byrne had a film version in mind from the start. The performers, tethered to their instruments and microphones but freed from the restricting elements of stands, cables, and seats, pass through our field of vision with a mix of precision and playfulness, with Lee’s mobile cameras matching and complementing Annie-B Parson’s choreography. They’re… Read moreĪmerican Utopia is just as energizing and affecting onscreen as it was in person, and Lee’s deft direction amplifies those qualities, emphasizing up-close views and illuminating angles unavailable to any concert- or theatergoer. Spike Lee kicks off TIFF with an electrifying spiritual sequel to Stop Making Senseįilm festivals, especially the major ones like Toronto, are never just about the films. But the film plays like a culmination, an idea maybe not reaching its final iteration, but certainly finding its ultimate expression. There’s a book on the way, too, and, vaccine-willing, a second round of performances in New York City. Like a lot of reactive works of art released during the presidency of Donald Trump ( some of which are also making their television debuts in the lead-up to the 2020 general election), the film indirectly grapples with the history and the atmosphere that led to our current reality-though only American Utopia can lay claim to the ultimate existential question: “Well… how did I get here?” It was born from Byrne’s pre-2016 impulse to collect and collate news of genuine hope and human advancement, resulting in two, not-unrelated creative outlets: The editorial nonprofit Reasons To Be Cheerful, and the album that spawned the concert tour that was adapted into a Broadway show that is now a Spike Lee joint. It came back into my life at just the right time: David Byrne’s American Utopia debuted on HBO this past weekend in the wake of Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett’s farcical confirmation hearings, a foiled coup in my home state, and the still-raging COVID-19 pandemic-the scope, severity, and utter mishandling of which we can blame in part, like the two other items in that list, on a president who has returned to public life only shortly after becoming an active vector for a virus that has killed more than 220,000 Americans. The best concert I saw in 2018 will most likely be the best concert I see in 2020.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply.AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |