Held in celebration of the seventh anniversary of the end of apartheid in South Africa, this day-long 2001 concert held in London's Trafalgar Square offers up an odd mix of rock, pop, rap, world music, dancing in the street, and humanitarian speechmaking (the concert is interrupted for 12 minutes while Britain's PM Tony Blair and Dr. Nelson Mandela take the stage). As is often the case in these smorgasbord sampler concerts, the music never gets a chance to settle into a groove as 13 of the 15 bands presented here are shown singing one song each (the exceptions are Ireland's The Corrs, with "What Can I Do?"--sporting a lead guitar lick lifted directly from Edie Brickell's "What I Am"--"So Young," and "Breathless"; and R.E.M., who perform "Imitation of Life," "Losing My Religion," and "Man on the Moon"). While many might recognize Billy Ocean, Dave Stewart (of Eurythmics fame), Hugh Masekela, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, and Baaba Maal, fewer--especially outside of the United Kingdom--are going to know Brit artists Lisa Roxanne, Commonwealth, Atomic Kitten, Mel B or Beverly Knight. More well meaning than well done, this is very optional for larger music collections. Aud: P. (R. Pitman)
South Africa Freedom Day: Concert on the Square
(2001) 77 min. DVD: $24.99. Image Entertainment (avail. from most distributors). Color cover. Volume 17, Issue 5
South Africa Freedom Day: Concert on the Square
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
Order From Your Favorite Distributor Today: