The Stone Roses: Made of Stone

Shane Meadows is one of my favourite directors; the Stone Roses are one of his favourite bands, and when they reformed a couple of years ago, Meadows got the job of making a film about their comeback, which is also a review of their career. The maker of 'This is England 90' is at his best when he captured how the band both shaped and were shaped by their time; perhaps unsurprisingly in an official documentary, we don't get much discussion of why the music on their second (career-ending) album was considered so disappointing by so many. The film of the young band is enchanting, though, if only because they are so young; as fifty-somethings, the band appear more guarded. The affectionate footage of the lifelong fans delighted by the reunion is a definite highpoint. What spoils it a little is the new concert footage at the end; an interminable guitar jam, followed by a dull rendition of 'Made of Stone' that loses all traces of the original's delicacy. One has to wait for the closing credits, and the chance to re-hear the original studio recording, to gain an appreciation of what the band did best at the peak of their career.