Viewers will not hear much live music from the legendary three-day rock festival that took place on Max Yasgur’s farmland a half-century ago in filmmaker Mick Richards’s memory-driven documentary Creating Woodstock. What they will get in this stream of recollections shared by a number of Woodstock’s behind-the-scenes producers is a sometimes surprising oral history of the incredibly complicated logistics and financial challenges involved in pulling off the festival. As many already know, Woodstock quickly turned to chaos when hundreds of thousands of attendees overwhelmed the admissions staff, forcing organizers to declare the event free. But well before the concert there was plenty of drama as land-use permits were granted and then denied by hippie-fearing officials, and ad-hoc deals with promoters, backers, unions, and others had to be finalized. The most interesting and (in retrospect) often funniest stories involve complications with getting artists to the stage amidst an audience that was nearly half-a-million strong. Improvisation was key: historic performances by Ritchie Havens, Arlo Guthrie, and John Sebastian happened because somebody on the stage crew literally grabbed the unprepared musicians and pushed them out in front of the audience (those who recall or know about Country Joe McDonald’s notorious "fish cheer" will enjoy the backstory of how that came about). Among the recognizable faces here is that of Michael Lang, the cherub-faced organizer who is seen riding a motorcycle around the festival in the classic 1970 documentary Woodstock. As of this writing, Lang has failed to put together a 50th-anniversary version of Woodstock. Extras include bonus scenes. Offering fascinating insights into this landmark cultural event, this is recommended. Aud: C, P. (T. Keogh)
Creating Woodstock
(2019) 111 min. DVD: $19.99. Cinema Libre Studio (avail. from most distributors). Volume 34, Issue 5
Creating Woodstock
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