January 04, 2004
A Mighty Wind
Christopher Guest has somehow managed to thrive as a one-man genre. First This is Spinal Tap, then Best In Show, and now A Mighty Wind, all "mockumentaries", movies about made up stuff in the documentary style. In a lot of ways, Wind is the best of the bunch. It's about a loosely connected group of folk-pop bands from the 1970s. What makes it work so well is that the cast wrote and performed all of the songs in the movie. The conceit of the film is that a reunion concert is staged following the death of the producer that gave them all their start back in the day. The movie shows what they've been up to since their heyday, how they get back in form for the reunion, and then the performance of the live show itself. The documentary bits are hilarious and filled with ad-libbed dialogue. The music is catchy and insanely silly. What's not to like?
I just don't get this guy's films. Spinal Tap... Okay. Best In Show.. maybe.
A Mighty Wind... was like getting beaten in the head with a baseball bat. Perhaps it just blew right over my head. I just didn't find it humourous at all.
Posted by: tyd at January 4, 2004 01:41 PM