Down from the Mountain

This is a film for music lovers. Here we have some of the most talented performers of folk/bluegrass/blues in America today doing some of the most enduring songs ever written. It is the music that is the star, not the performers or the filmmakers. In fact, I think the filmmakers knew that and deliberately played down the cinematic tricks. What you see (and hear) is what you get. The introductory documentary is more a mosaic than a story. It sets the mood of the entire movie, showing the performers as ordinary folk who might as well be gathering for a neighborhood picnic. The performances are all excellent. Standouts include Ralph Stanley, John Hartford and Alison Krauss. If you have even a passing interest in American Roots music this is a film not to be missed.

Concert movie focussing on the `bluegrass' songs of the Coens film `O Brother Where Art Thou?' EmmyLou Harris and other perform in a feast of music that washes over you from start to finish. Sadly it doesn't include the main song that George Clooney lip-synched too. At the Edinburgh film festival, where the movie got its international premiere, legendary music documentary maker D.A. Pennebaker (Don't Look Back) explained that they had tried to get the guy to sing it about six times but he always sang different words; as a `definitive' version had already been released on the `O Brother' soundtrack, they decided, after talking to the Coens, that the number should be dropped from `Down from the Mountain.'

It's almost impossible to describe the colourful quality of this film, not because it has or lacks special merit in the normal measures of cinema, nor should it be so evaluated, but because it comes out of nowhere to reach parts of you that you don't expect a movie to reach.

Co-incidentally, last June I drove to Charlottesville, VA to visit Monticello and see UVA. On that evening I stumbled into a performance of Gillian Welch and David Rawlings at a local brewpub and had a very similar experience to that of the film. The music was just so good that it almost brought tears to my eyes. Like the firsthand joy of getting a glimpse into the souls of Welch and Rawlings, the footage of Down from the Mountain, especially the unpretentious commentary and dialogue between the performers, both onstage and behind the curtains, revealed their genuinely good nature. This greatly enhanced the earthy loveliness of some brilliant bluegrass.

I would love to have been at this stunning concert, but sadly was not. Having missed it, I can perhaps take some comfort in the film's additional insights and experience that the live audience did not have. The camera work backstage might not win an Oscar, but accomplished much in capturing some of the character of its subjects. This added dimensions of warmth and appreciation to their performances which would be difficult to imagine that the audience could have shared.

This is a film for music aficionados, not cinema buffs. Doubtless a film critic could find some artistic merit in the work, but it seems much safer to simply wholeheartedly recommend it as pure musical ecstasy.

I am watching this on DVD for the 5th time. I usually don't watch movies over and over again in a stretch, but this is a video album. This is down to earth video, introducing stars as people who become stars on stage but a bunch of talented people who give you a feeling they are you next door neighbors, approachable. The music is superb!

I just feel there should have been more music on this though, but heck, it is great. Perhaps we can get more stuff like this. I like listening to CDs but I do like being brought close to the show, which is possible with todays set ups.

Unfortunately, I missed the actual concert at the Ryman, despite the fact that I live in Nashville. My young son is a Coen Brothers fanatic, I always found their work to be slightly off target with respect to my own tastes.

That was, until, I saw "O Brother..." which I saw several times. When "Down from the Mountain" was shown here in Nashville I also visited it several times.

What music is shown is excellent, I'm a big fan of watching music being created-- I believe that seeing the performers interact adds a depth of understanding of the music. Unfortunately, not every song presented during the concert is in the film, but what's there was very satisfying.

It looked like the film was shot on Digital Beta, or some video format and then transferred to film. As such, it looked a little flat, but the photography itself and the sound recording were both beyond reproach. I'm hoping when I get the DVD release of this film that they've skipped the film transfer and given me the pure video version.