Here are a couple documentaries that try to capture the essence of cultural figures that seem bigger than life.
Th
e Beatles dvd is hosted and written by publisher Les Krantz. Giving a single hour to the phenomenon of this Fab Four is a daunting task, and Krantz does his best. While the overall narration seems a bit dispassionate and superficial, there are a couple quite intriguing episodes that make this viewing worthwhile. The European tour with Ringo being taken ill is interesting in that it shows the replacement drummer with the rest of the band in concert, and Paul’s admission of taking drugs is quite intriguing as well. Most of the other footage has been viewed before, but it’s still nice to have a handy refresher course.
In contrast the 60 minute special on Muhammed Ali is a fascinating story, in both the personal and sports realm. The documentary goes through Ali’s entire career, with some fantastic footage of a young Ali as a teenager talking about his first time boxing, and also as a young man “groovin’” to music with his friends in a convertible. The vintage footage of him boxing, from pre-Olympics to pre and post incarceration shows the astonishingly deft hand work of this master heavyweight. The cultural climate that lead Ali to change his name from Cassius Clay, his toying with the media (particularly his relationship with Howard Cosell) and his acclimation to the US culture is fascinatingly portrayed here. The hour flies by faster than Ali’s left jab.
MVD Visual
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