David Byrne, Tina Weymouth, Chris Frantz, and Jerry Harrison star in Jonathan Demme’s superlative concert film.
In November 1978, I saw Talking Heads, five feet from the stage at The Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles. (Their engagement is included on the 500-seat music venue’s history page.)
Seeing this film in IMAX was better than that.
A school friend introduced me to Talking Heads, shortly before the release of their second album, Their odd rhythms sounded so foreign to me that I initially resisted their first album (Talking Heads: 77), but the second album, More Songs About Buildings and Food, caught my ear, and I found myself listening to it again and again, prompting me to revisit the first album, which made me realize that it was those odd rhythms I had disdained that were now proving themselves to be irresistible.
From then on, I was hooked, and I loved Fear of Music and Remain in Light. I saw them live on their tours after each album release. The latter tour featured an expanded group that truly rocked the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles. Amidst nearly 6,000 people. I remember hearing and seeing the band perform a song, and then feeling it vibrate in my body and my seat moments later as it reverberated through the open-air facility.
Their next album, Speaking in Tongues, released in June 1983, followed by a tour. I can’t recall why I didn’t see them when they visited the Pantages Theater in Los Angeles in December 1983, but that’s when they recorded what became Stop Making Sense.
As Byrne recounted during a post-screening Q&A session during the Toronto International Film Festival last week (September 11), conducted by Spike Lee, the band realized that the tour they had put together had a narrative structure that leant itself to a film. (The band released the live album The Name of This Band Is Talking Heads in 1982.) They contacted Jonathan Demme, who came with them on tour when he wasn’t busy re-shooting portions of Swing Shift.
The film debuted at the San Francisco International Film Festival just a few months later (April 1984) and then entered general release in October 1984. By that point, I had moved to Brooklyn, but I have lovely memories of seeing the film at the Beekman Theatre in Manhattan during its original release.
Since then, I’ve watched the film, streaming on The Criterion Channel, which I very much enjoyed. In March 1983, A24 Films acquired it for distribution and has now restored it in 4K and IMAX, with Jerry Harrison overseeing the sound, recorded in digital for the film back in 1983.
My decision to attend the advance screening last night was based entirely on nostalgia, which promptly faded from my mind as a giant-sized David Byrne (in IMAX) strode to the middle of an empty stage and pressed ‘play’ on a portable cassette player, which accompanied him on guitar as he sang “Psycho Killer.”
The booming chords and Byrne’s distinctive voice thrummed into my chest, thanks to the theatre’s booming speakers, and I was completely enthralled from that moment onward. As the other members of Talking Heads — Tina Weymouth, Jerry Harrison, and Chris Frant — joined Byrne on song for the three succeeding songs, joined on the next song or two by the steadily expanding touring group, I was struck for the first time by a sudden realization: the band members are being introduced individually so you can hear how their presence changes and shapes each successive song.
Frankly, I don’t know why I never realized that before. I thought it was a cute idea to showcase them as individuals. Instead, it vividly demonstrates how different instruments shape and change how the songs are being played.
And yes, I thought the structure of the show was Demme’s idea to give it a narrative, when, in fact, it was what the band was already doing. So, credit where credit is due.
As a film, Stop Making Sense is a concert, recorded live. That’s it. Nothing is added to introduce the band and its associated players. There is no padding. There is only 88 minutes of sheer musical genius, dramatized spectacularly well and staged to perfection.
Whether you like the band and its music or not, the film is essential viewing. No ifs, ands, or buts. See this movie, preferably in IMAX.
The film opens September 22, via A24 Films, only at IMAX theaters. The following week, September 29, it will open in general release. For theater locations and showtimes, visit the official site.
Dallas Film Now. 