John's Movie Musings

With Halloween fast approaching, I thought it appropriate that I watch something scary. Since I don't do well with horror flicks, I thought watching the Rolling Stones in HD would qualify.

So I got interested in Shine a Light when I heard Scorsese was directing it. But the final product turned out way different than I was expecting. I had hoped Scorsese would chronicle the Stones through one of their tours. Instead, I just got a single benefit concert. That's not a bad thing by any means, but filming a single concert is kind of a waste of talent for a director of that caliber.

The best part of the whole movie is right at the beginning where Scorsese is trying to coordinate how the concert will be filmed. The Stones pay very little attention to the man and I can only imagine how painful that must have been after years of actors following his lead. It all culminates with Scorsese getting the set list minutes before the concert starts. It's pretty funny.

So as a concert, it's pretty good. Of course that'll depend on how much you like the Stones. But if you do, the guys still know how to put on a show and all the songs still sound great. They do lose points for putting "Paint it Black" in the bonus features instead of the main film, but at least it's there.

Grade: B