"Summer of Soul (... Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)" (2021 release; 117 min.) is a documentary about the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival which took place over 6 weekends from late June through late August and thus at the same time as Woodstock, hence the nickname the "Black Woodstock" for the Harlem Cultural Festival. Even though these events were taped, the tapes have been sitting in a basement collecting dust for 50 years, until the Roots' Questlove decided to make a film about this. As the documentary opens, we see Stevie Wonder doing a stunning drum solo, yes a DRUM SOLO, as the crowd goes wild. The Chamber Brothers come next and blow us out of the water with their "Uptown" song. Along the way, we are reminded of the tremendous social changes that were taking place in those years. At this point we are 10 min. Into the documentary.
Couple of comments: words aren't enough to thank Questlove for saving these important and vivid videotapes and turning them into this fabulous documentary. All the footage is in full color and the audio mix is perfect. The documentary itself shifts back between footage of the festival, several attendees who reminisce about it all now 50 years later, and social commentary and context. Of course the festival footage is what interested me most, and it is fingerlickin' good: BB King, the Fifth Dimension, Nina Simone, Gladys Knight, and Sly & the Family Stone are just some of the artists that appear in the film. THE highlight for me is the spontaneous "jam" between Mahalia Jackson and Mavis Staples, as they remember and pay tribute to MLK. Words are not enough, and frankly that goes for the entire documentary. I am already going on record that this will get nominated for a Best Documentary Oscar next year. After I saw the documentary, I immediately wanted to order the soundtrack, but sadly and inexplicably, there is no soundtrack for this fabulous movie. WHY??
"Summer of Soul" premiered at this year's Sundance film festival to immediate critical and commercial acclaim. The film opened this July 4th weekend at my local arthouse theater here in Cincinnati, and the Monday matinee screening where I saw this at was attended very nicely (just over 20 people, from a quick count I did). When the movie's end titles started rolling, the audience clapped and I gladly join in. There is a reason why this film is currently rated 99% Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes! Frankly, for myself, it is the best movie of 2021 so far., MILES and MILES away from/better than crap like F9 and The Tomorrow War. If you have any interest in the history of music or wonder what a "Black Woodstock" might sound and look like, I'd readily suggest you check this out, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray (likely/hopefully with tons of bonus materials), and draw your own conclusion.
*UPDATE 12/25/21* I'm making my "best movies of 2021" list, and "Summer of Soul" is easily my No. 1 movie of the year, period. I saw it 4 (!) times in the theater, and then saw it again on Hulu. I cannot get over the fact that I had never heard of the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival until this documentary came out this year. If you are a fan of music history, do yourself a favor, and please watch this film. You will thank me later.
*UPDATE 3/28/11* As I had predicted since I first saw this incredible documentary in the theater in June, 2021, it won the Oscar for Best Documentary. Frankly, this should've been been nominated for Best Movie Oscar as well (rather than duds like "Dune" and "Nightmare Alley"). So very happy for Questlove & Co. Now let's get a reissue of the movie, this time with BONUS materials!
