Gimmick adds some interest to Beastie Boys’ concert film

  • By Robert Horton / Herald Movie Critic
  • Thursday, March 30, 2006 9:00pm
  • LifeGo-See-Do

The democratic spirit of the Beastie Boys finds expression in the new concert movie, “Awesome; I … Shot That!” It was recorded at Madison Square Garden in October 2004, and consists mostly of footage shot by 50 audience members, each of whom was given a video camera at the beginning of the evening.

First, about the title. The full title has a word between the “I” and the “Shot” that cannot be printed in a newspaper. So you will have to imagine that part. But let us also note the rare use of a semicolon in the title. That alone makes me like the Beastie Boys.

The concert itself? An energetically delivered bunch of Beastie Boys songs. They begin the show dressed in hilariously idiotic green-and-yellow sweatsuits, then later morph into tux-clad lounge musicians, for a segment in which they play their instruments instead of rapping.

The Beastie Boys are Adrock (Adam Horovitz, who once starred in the movie “Lost Angels”), MCA (Adam Yauch), and Mike D (Michael Diamond). They may have first hit it big way back in 1986 with the anthem “(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (to Party),” which they now seem embarrassed about. But time has not dimmed the humor of three goony-looking Jewish guys doing hip-hop.

The multiple-camera technique gives mixed results. The novelty is interesting at first, and there is something charming about the fact that a couple of the video shooters can’t turn off the onscreen timer on their cameras.

A few cameras are clearly locked in place closer to the stage, and give a markedly superior visual image. They also prevent motion sickness from kicking in after a few minutes.

“Awesome; I … Shot That!” HH

Standard issue: Concert film with the Beastie Boys; the gimmick is that 50 audience members were given video cameras before the show, and their footage forms the bulk of the movie. The promising approach results in a standard-issue concert movie.

Rated: R rating is for language

Now showing: Neptune

Having this many cameras makes it tempting to cut frequently, a habit that really grows tiresome in a concert film. What’s fun here, though, is the tendency for the amateur shooters to catch offhand moments of kooky crowd reaction (or the occasional celebrity, like Ben Stiller). I could have lived without the footage of the guy who took his camcorder into the bathroom with him, but the idea was funny.

“Awesome” was directed by Beastie member Adam Yauch, under his filmmaking pseudonym Nathaniel Hornblower. It’s an interesting idea that, in the end, doesn’t seem like much of an advance over the average concert movie after all.

At the risk of sounding 100 years old, it might have been useful to have subtitles on the screen. The Beastie Boys’ lyrics are clever and cutting, but in a live situation it’s virtually impossible to hear them. And having said that, I will go put some Guy Lombardo on the hi-fi.

The Beastie Boys star in the new concert film, “Awesome; I … Shot That!”

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