Hendrix

A very lame, cheap & disappointing production. If this was a tell-all about the Monkees it would be embarrassing, but we're talking about the greatest instrumentalist of rock music, one of the true genius of 20th century art. What's lost in this film is Hendrix' MUSIC. He was an amazing songwriter, but you won't find any idea of that here. If your introduction to Hendrix is this movie, you'd think he was nothing more than a glorified karaoke artist. The film has the actor performing "Hey Joe," "Wild Thing," "All Along the Watchtower," "Star Spangled Banner" ... getting the drift yet...? ALL cover songs, not a single song or composition actually written by Jimi. Obviously the Hendrix estate / copyright owners had nothing to do with this production. Then there's the Woodstock conceit, with Jimi wailing in front of the half-million. Anyone who knows Woodstock or Jimi knows he played in front of the last remaining 40,000 straglers on the Monday morning when near everyone had left. Most of the acting was okay, but the rest is a waste.

I'm very disappointed by the reviews I've seen so far. I think they can be broken into two very different views: 1) This is a low budget movie and should have done better, and 2) I'm a guitar player and the guitar playing and depiction Jimi's life were incomplete.

Okay, I think I can address those all at once: It wasn't a move for guitarists, and being a low budget movie, they couldn't possibly cover every aspect of the man's life.

What they chose to cover, I believe, was very substantial and important. Being a guitarist myself, I'm not disappointed in Wood's performance. Was his "guitar playing" perfect? No, he's an actor, not a guitarist. Nevertheless, the movie was very well done, Wood did an amazing job of portraying the character of Hendrix, and the story told a great deal of Jimi's early life in music. The latter part, I think, is probably what bothered most, as it didn't go into enough details about his demise.

I think it's unfair to put down the movie for that. I don't think that's where the writers and directors were focusing. They were concentrating on his early music career and I think they did it brilliantly. I found it entirely engrossing and having seen it three times, I'll watch it a fourth.

If you're not a Hendrix fan, but you're curious about his early career, I think this movie is just for you. I won't guarantee that it's entirely accurate, but it's close enough to satisfy me, and the acting and music are exceptional.

Really torn between the positive and negative aspects of 'Hendrix'. There was very little attempt at trying even remotely to look like Wood Harris could play guitar. At least they had him playing left handed on a right handed Stratocaster. Obviously very low budget, and not Jimi Hendrix's original recordings. That being said, the covers were better than most I've heard (I'm trying to find out who played guitar on the covers) and Harris at times seems to channel Jimi quite well. The rest of the cast was uninspiring, and Billy Zane's glued on mustache was laughable. I made it to the end so I have to give a minimum 5 stars

everyone, hendrix's copywriters won't let the rights to any of his songs go to the movie makers, that is why the only songs you hear throughout the movie are covers (famous and excellent as they are). they CAN'T use his orig's, thats why they don't. this is also why the rumors of all these renditions of hendrix's biography (ie quentin Tarantino directing, andre 3000 or will smith acting) will probably not happen anytime soon. as you have been saying, his music is what was missing and that is part of what makes this movie under-par in some ways. Jimi was music, and his music was him. No music, and his biography is simply incomplete in a huge way.

who ever reviewed this should first know something about the subject. Could I Imagine Jimi saying dig it? are you insane have you ever recordings of the man. The interview sequence was almost verbatim to the actual interview.

Wood Harris did an excellent job as Jimi he was so believable I forgot he wasn't him. Thats called acting.

He must have spent weeks studying the moves mannerisms and speech of jimi.

And as far as the strumming being off. He is actually playing the right parts on Hey Joe and some other lead guitar jams. The only thing that was not copied exact is the Monterey guitar was the wrong color I feel this was due to licensing thing with Fender guitars as the headstock's also did not have a Fender Logo.

The performance of Wild Thing and the Star spangled Banner were spot on right down to the exact movements and stage clothes.

Whoever did the vocals did an excellent job also

The script may have been weak but for Hendrix fans it was magical to watch Wood Harris recreate the most revered guitar player of all time who was actually as much visual as he was musical.

My son and I played the actual Monterey performance right behind the Wood Harris performance and they are almost identical.

More movies should pay attention to detail and continuity.

I own the DVD and watch it a couple of times a year.