Word: films
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Dates: during 2010-2019
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...Remember Me” doesn’t need its title to implore you to remember it; there are enough moments in the film that do it justice. Nevertheless, this is a film that is eventful but never gripping, emotional but rarely compelling. Though the Twi-hards will definitely catch it in theaters, for the rest the film-going audience, the twist at the end may or may not just be worth a matinee ticket...
...first scene of director Emmett Malloy’s White Stripes documentary, “Under Great White Northern Lights,” a confused fan stumbles up to the camera and asks, “Where’s the show, guys?” For a film about one of the most perplexingly idiosyncratic, mannered, and sincere bands going, this question perfectly summarizes the sentiments of the audience as they sit through 93 minutes of tour footage where the band members never quite reveal the pretense—or if there even is a pretense—behind...
...Jack White—who spends most of the film smiling like a satanic Cheshire cat—could dress mostly in red jump suits and walk around surrounded by bowler-hat-wearing, bag-pipe-playing roadies without seeming obviously fake. The Stripes’ utter commitment to their art is evident throughout the musical component of the documentary, where the White Stripes put on a series of impassioned concerts in diverse and bizarre venues. Jack and Meg begin each show, after brief bag pipe introductions, by marching straight onto stage (or lane, in the case of a concert...
...film, however, does little more than present clips of these shows in relatively unexciting footage. Much of the film is shot in black and white, a treatment completely contrary to the White Stripes’ fervent belief that their music is spontaneous and immediate—not emulative and rooted in the past. Additionally, the black and white filter seems like a post-production effect added to produce some sense of feigned authenticity. This, too, is completely contrary to the White Stripes’ own recording methods, which involve tape-recording with little to no post-production work. There exists...
...best portions of the film are the impromptu gigs the Stripes play in out-of-the-way venues like buses, bowling alleys and elderly homes. Nothing suits the White Stripes’ spontaneity better than a surprise show, and these concerts are the most unique part of the tour. However, they receive less screen time than the stage shows, which, while aurally impressive, are not nearly as engaging in terms of narrative and filmmaking as their off-stage counterparts...