Down from the Mountain

2001
7.3| 1h38m| NR| en| More Info
Released: 05 June 2001 Released
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Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Synopsis

On May 24, 2000, the historic Ryman Auditorium was booked to offer Nashvillians an evening of sublime beauty. Label executives and soundtrack producers so loved the music of O Brother, Where Art Thou? that they brought it to life as a benefit concert for the Country Music Hall of Fame. Filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen loved it so much that they hired famed documentary filmmaker D.A. Pennebaker to record the show for posterity. The concert that unfolded that night was one of the greatest musical moments in the annals of Music City. Performers: John Hartford, Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch, Chris Thomas King, The Cox Family, Fairfield Four, Union Station, Colin Linden, The Nashville Bluegrass Band, The Peasall Sisters, Ralph Stanley, David Rawlings, The Whites.

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Reviews

Scanialara You won't be disappointed!
Kaydan Christian A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.
Tymon Sutton The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.
Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.
scorch1-1 I wonder if the reviewers are still around who wrote of this concert in 2000, before 9/11, and since that tragic event if their reviews still stand. I suspect they will look at this fine effort in a different light now, and love it more. It's like looking back at innocent children before bad things happened. Although the film, Oh Brother, Where are Thou, is a favorite of mine I missed this special and didn't discover it until Netflix instant downloads became available. I have been watching it three or four times a week since I discovered it. I was shocked to find out it was done in 2000, 11 years ago. I love hearing the family's, The Cox's, the White's and of course the little Pesall sisters, who I imagine have grown and look a lot different now. I haven't Googled any of the talent in this concert because I was afraid of what I might find. Alison Krauss and Emmy Lou Harris are perfect. The Fairfield Four opened the show and Ralph Stanley closes it but the between part has purest blues and blue grass I have ever heard. That Welch/Rawlings are quit the pair. I will probably spoil this by watching it too many times but I just can't stop.
erstokke To make a concert in addition of the usual soundtrack cd was a good idea. But this film doesn´t make it. It is a cheap, low quality attempt to squeeze more money out of "O Brother Where Art Thou".I like old time music and several of the artist in this concert are among my favorites. But the this concert on DVD is a big disappointment: - Picture: Hand-held cameras with a lot of camera shake and video-noise. And the cameramen doesn´t react to the music. For example when there is a solo by the great dobro-player Jerry Douglas, the camera is still focused on the singer for a while. - Sound: Sound is terrible. It is mostly done with two microphones on stage, which make the sound of many musicians disappear. The sound is harsh and sharp, and bass-notes cannot be heard. A year 2000 concert DVD with only 2 channel sound. - The music and the musicians: There are some great performances here, but mostly the concert is let down by the fact that the artists barely had any rehearsal.If you want to see what a good concert film should look and sound like, see James Taylor´s concert at the Beacon Theatre.
Patrouillie This is a concert film about musicians enjoying to make music. At last a concert film where a shot can be longer than 30 seconds. No special effects, dazling camera movements or superfast cutting here. But a crew of talented cameramen trying to capture the emotion of a concert by concentrating on the faces of the musicians. Take also notice of the incredible sound quality. The sound engineer took the risk of using only a few high quality microphones and let the musicians do most of the balancing. The clarity and transparency is remarkable.
RHurley It's almost impossible to describe the colourful quality of this film, not because it has or lacks special merit in the normal measures of cinema, nor should it be so evaluated, but because it comes out of nowhere to reach parts of you that you don't expect a movie to reach.Co-incidentally, last June I drove to Charlottesville, VA to visit Monticello and see UVA. On that evening I stumbled into a performance of Gillian Welch and David Rawlings at a local brewpub and had a very similar experience to that of the film. The music was just so good that it almost brought tears to my eyes. Like the firsthand joy of getting a glimpse into the souls of Welch and Rawlings, the footage of Down from the Mountain, especially the unpretentious commentary and dialogue between the performers, both onstage and behind the curtains, revealed their genuinely good nature. This greatly enhanced the earthy loveliness of some brilliant bluegrass.I would love to have been at this stunning concert, but sadly was not. Having missed it, I can perhaps take some comfort in the film's additional insights and experience that the live audience did not have. The camera work backstage might not win an Oscar, but accomplished much in capturing some of the character of its subjects. This added dimensions of warmth and appreciation to their performances which would be difficult to imagine that the audience could have shared.This is a film for music aficionados, not cinema buffs. Doubtless a film critic could find some artistic merit in the work, but it seems much safer to simply wholeheartedly recommend it as pure musical ecstasy.

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