In 1983, my aunt was into Talking Heads. I knew of them, but not enough to care one way or another. She bought tickets to their concert, which turned out to be the last one on the tour before they filmed the concerts at the Pantages for this movie. the venue was a sports arena, and they had removed all the floor seats to make the place a giant dance hall. From the moment Byrne walked out with his acoustic and a boom box to the closing notes of the second encore, I was mesmerized. As the house lights came on and we stumbled back into the real world, it struck me that I had just seen on of the most amazing concerts ever performed. I had found my new favorite band. From that moment I was a Heads head.
Stop Making Sense was not filmed with widescreen (anamorphic) lenses; it was shot full frame. The letterboxing was added in post-production to create the 1:1.85 screen ratio that is now standard for theaters.
The letterboxing was never added to the footage that was not in the theatrical release, which is why you see that footage in its original ratio (1:1.37?).
Sometimes features that were not shot in widescreen are released in both full screen and letterboxed editions, the latter simulating how the movie looked in its theatrical release. Some cineastes mistakenly believe that the full screen edition is a cropped, pan-and-scan version, when really the letterboxed version is the one that is getting cropped.
How can you tell whether a movie was shot with widescreen (anamorphic) lenses? One easy way is to look for lens flares, when the camera shoots directly into the sun, a spotlight, or car headlights. The lens flares will be circular with a normal lens, and oval with a widescreen lens.
This movie ran for like 2 years straight, broke all records, at Chicago’s Fine Arts theaters. Mega sound system, WAAAY loud. It was almost like a real concert; amazing experience.
I love this DVD! Particularly as it comes with a choice of the different mixes. I’ve always prefered the mix that went with the film, rather than the mix they did for the CD. It have much more of a live feel to it.
It’s one of the best live music performance films ever. Cohesive, expertly directed and visualised, and of course the music is excellent too. But even if you don’t particularly like Talking Head’s music you should watch this film and marvel at how they managed to make the well worn subject matter of a pop concert fresh and original.
The only flaw I see in it is the decision to include the Tom Tom Club stuff in the middle. Nothing against the Tom Tom Club, it probably made sense to do at the gigs, but their inclusion in the film spoils the continuity.
**PoorYorick[b/] (poor, poor Yorick), my question was rhetorical-- and an insiders’ reference to the film’s original publicity, of which the question “Why a big suit?” was a part. (Welcome to the inside, my friend!)
