Overview
Michael Wadleigh's WOODSTOCK: THREE DAYS OF PEACE & MUSIC finds the best rock stars of the 1960s performing at the historic Woodstock Music and Art Fair, the most celebrated rock concert of all time. Shot over the course of three days in August 1969, the film conveys the unique spirit of the once-in-a-lifetime, communal event, and in turn, captures the mood of an entire era. Amazingly volatile, electrifying performances are included by such timeless artists as Richie Havens; Joan Baez; The Who; Sha Na Na; Joe Cocker; Country Joe and The Fish; Arlo Guthrie; Crosby, Stills and Nash; Ten Years After; Santana; Sly and the Family Stone; Jimi Hendrix; Canned Heat; John Sebastian; Jefferson Airplane; and Janis Joplin. In addition to the music, the film's historical relevance is what makes it such an important time capsule, thrillingly eternalizing the legendary event for generations to come. This digitally remastered, widescreen director's cut of the Academy Award-winning documentary features 40 minutes of footage not included in the original film, and was released in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the legendary music festival.
Awards:
Main Cast & Crew:
Michael Wadleigh - Director
Crosby, Stills & Nash
Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young
Ritchie Havens
Santana IV
The Isley Brothers & Santana
Joan Baez
The Who
Sha-Na-Na
Joe Cocker
Carlos Santana
Details
- Format: DVD (Director's Cut / Edition, Special Edition, Anniversary Edition, Remastered, Restored)
- Run Time: 225
- Color Format: Color
- UPC: 085391176756
- Genre: DOCUMENTARY
- Rating: R (MPAA)
- Release Date: June 2009
Movie Reviews
Notes:
Original theatrical release: March 26, 1970
WOODSTOCK was added to the Library of Congress National Film Registry in 1996.
Shot in upstate New York in August 1969, in Technicolor. The Woodstock Music and Art Fair was produced by Michael Lang (Executive Producer), John Roberts, Joel Rosenman and Arthur Kornfeld. Produced by Wadleigh-Maurice, Ltd.
It is estimated that the cost of the festival was about $3.3 million, with $1.7 million collected from ticket sales (the promoters declared the event free after it became apparent that they were not equipped to deal with the mass of people who showed up). Although the original partners lost about $250,000 of their own money and owed the rest to a bank, they managed to recoup their losses a decade later through the royalties from this film and the soundtrack.
Tickets to the original event were priced at $18. The 25th anniversary celebration of Woodstock, Woodstock '94, held August 12-14, 1994, was budgeted to cost $30 million, with tickets going for $135.
Reviews:
"...It is memorable, and it is moving..." - 09/01/1994 Sight and Sound, p.55
"...Michael Wadleigh's Oscar-winning documentary remains the most enduring movie of a very great movie year..." - 08/12/1994 USA Today, p.3D
5 stars out of 5 -- "Mirroring the festival's communal sprawl, Michael Wadleigh's 224-minute director's cut flows like a monumental rock symphony." - 07/09/2009 Rolling Stone
4 stars out of 5 -- "There is much euphoria and jubilation on offer -- and sundry musical delights..." - 07/06/2009 Uncut
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