I think this might be the first concert film that I’ve seen at the festival but, given that’s it the LFF, this concert film is of course directed by Spike Lee.
David Byrne’s American Utopia
Dir. Spike Lee / Dur. 105 mins
Strand:- Create
In A Nutshell:- David Byrne performs the Broadway version of his American Utopia album which also includes a number of Talking Heads classics.
The Good:- I have to say that, while I haven’t necessarily listened to a lot of Talking Heads, that I like David Byrne. He’s the sort of wryly amusing but distinctively odd artist that I enjoy so the idea of spending one hour forty five in the comedy of David Byrne being David Byrne while performing some music was something that I was already on board for and this did not disappoint. Spike Lee’s staging and direction is simple yet lively and energetic, suiting Byrne’s idiosyncratic style. Byrne himself is as David Byrne-y as you would expect him to be - veering close to pretentious but managing to puncture it with self-deprecating humour before he hits that mark. The songs are all enjoyable and he even manages to make a serious point with a Janelle Monae cover that doesn’t feel tonally out of place with the other pieces. The mix of Talking Heads classics alongside newer pieces from the album also blends well - there’s always a risk that the newer stuff stands out in the wrong way but that isn’t the case here.
The Bad:- Genuinely haven’t really got anything to add here. I guess the only thing would be that if you’re not a fan of David Byrne then this is unlikely to win you over as he is as David Byrne-y as he’s ever been. But then you probably wouldn't watch this in the first place, I guess.
The Verdict:- If I had to sum this up in a word, I would go with “joyful”. I genuinely spent most of this tapping or singing along with a big dopey grin on my face. An absolute highlight of the festival.
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