Stars: Talking Heads

Summary: A 1994 stage show performed by Talking Heads with the bonus tracks 'Cities', 'Big Business' and 'I Zimbra'.

Jonathan Demme made this stunning and unique rock concert video of the Talking Heads by documenting three different shows the group performed in Hollywood at the Pantages Theater in December 1983. Restrained while maintaining a classic sense of style, Demme gets the most out of his subjects. The camera is always a second citizen to the action. The film begins with a solo from David Byrne, performing an acoustic version of "Psycho Killer," and soon has evolved into a nine-piece band for "Take Me to the River." In addition to Byrne, the Heads include Jerry Harrison, Tina Weymouth, and Chris Franz, who are joined by three more musicians and two backup singers--who don't shy away from the chance to dance and run around with the rest of the band. The screen behind the band displays a variety of images ranging from words to evocative images to children's drawings. The end result is a resounding testament to the band's talent and sense of humor--and one of the finest rock films ever made.

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Over the course of three nights at Hollywood's Pantages Theatre in December 1983, filmmaker Jonathan Demme joined creative forces with cinematographer Jordan Cronenweth and Talking Heads ... and miracles occurred. Following a staging concept by singer-guitarist David Byrne, this euphoric concert film transcends that all-too-limited genre to become the greatest film of its kind. A guaranteed cure for anyone's blues, it's a celebration of music that never grows old, fuelled by the polyrhythmic pop-funk precision that was a Talking Heads trademark, and lit from within by the geeky supernova that is David Byrne.

The staging--and Demme's filming of it--builds toward an orgasmic release of music, rising from the bare-stage simplicity of Byrne, accompanied only by a boom box on "Psycho Killer" to the ecstatic crescendo of "Burning Down the House", by which time the Heads and additional personnel have all arrived on stage for a performance that seems channelled from heaven for the purpose of universal uplift. (God bless Demme for avoiding shots of the luckiest audience in 80s pop history; its presence is acknowledged but not at the viewer's expense.) With the deliriously eccentric Byrne as ringleader (pausing mid-concert to emerge in his now-legendary oversized suit), this circus of musical pleasure defies the futility of reductive description; it begs to be experienced, felt in the heart, head and bones, and held there the way we hold on to cherished memories. On those three nights in December 1983, Talking Heads gave love, life, and joy in generous amounts that years cannot erode, and Demme captured this act of creative goodwill on film with minimalist artistic perfection. Stop Making Sense is an invitation to pleasure that will never wear out its welcome. --Jeff Shannon

Aspect Ratio:	16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Bonus Tracks, Audio Commentary, Storyboard To Film Comparisons, Theatrical Trailer, Interviews, Promotional Clip, Full Motion Menus
Year:	1994
Release Date:	March 15, 2004
Runtime:	99 minutes
Certification:	Exempt.
Catalogue Number:	P A L M D V D 30132
Keywords:	Music, Rock, Stop, Talking, Pop, Making, Sense, Heads, Performing, Arts, Popular
Genre:	Music/Performing Arts