The Love We Make

Director/cinematographer Albert Maysles and co-director Bradley Kaplan take a fly-on-the-wall approach for this chronicle of Paul McCartney's participation in 2001's Concert for New York. As McCartney himself explains, he was visiting the city when the Twin Towers fell. Since "humor and music" helped his parents get through World War II, he felt inspired to offer the same. During the shoot, he meets with Dan Rather, Howard Stern, and other media personalities (these sequences are in color; the rest are in black-and-white), while several musicians also put in appearances, including Eric Clapton, James Taylor, and Pete Townshend. Between interviews, McCartney rehearses old and new material, including Beatles classics such as "Let It Be" (the filmmakers also work in clips of David Bowie, Elton John, and the Rolling Stones from the eventual televised concert). The camera follows McCartney around the city, where fans accost him at every turn, and while that must get old, he's more patient than not. "I can talk to anyone," he tells Stern, but when he decides he needs a break from all the autograph seekers, it's hard not to blame him. Made for Showtime, The Love We Make doesn't rank among the classic music films, like Maysles's own Gimme Shelter, but it's an effective snapshot of a beloved superstar at a particular moment in time. Presented in DTS 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1 and stereo on DVD, and DTS-HD 5.1, Dolby Digital 5.1, and LPCM stereo on Blu-ray, this is recommended. (K. Fennessy)