Block Party (2005) July 18, 2006

Dir. Michel Gondry

Starring Dave Chappelle, The Roots, The Fugees, Erykah Badu etc.,

This movie, directed by Michel Gondry is quite different from the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and I was expecting it to be as this is a documentary and the other was not. It did have a bit of the feel of someone’s home movies… as it was not very slick, but I think that added to the personal and approachability factor they surely were attempting to achieve and I think it worked well.

The movie starts off with Chappelle giving out free tickets and free bus rides to a block party that he would be throwing in Brooklyn.

I really enjoyed seeing Chappelle, his interaction with people and their reaction to him.

I don’t know a lot about rap music but often found myself slapping my thigh to the beat and thought it was enjoyable.

I enjoyed the behind the scenes with the artists and Chappelle, rehearsing, fooling around, telling (sometimes corny) jokes. It felt natural and not forced.

There are a few places where I thought the movie was lacking though. In the beginning, Dave invited all these people to the concert: Excited black teens, eldery white folks from Ohio who knew little or nothing of rap and hip hop music, and a group of college kids that were in a marching band (who arrived at the party in full regalia). Where were they during the concert? What was their reaction? The little old lady with white hair… was she tapping her foot and sporting a smile? I wanted to see… but alas, they were not to be found. I didn’t necessarily want an in-depth interview with them, but geez… a 2 second spot of them smiling, wiggling their butts, anything, something.

We did get escorted throughout the property of a mildly eccentric couple that have taken an old broken down building and have re-broken it but to their own taste and ideas. A minute less of them, and one more of the folks in the crowd would have made me happy. I did, however, think they probably could be the subject of their very own documentary.

All in all, I enjoyed this movie, found David Chappelle to be very personable and was quite entertained.

Keywords: Concert, Brooklyn

Block Party (2005) July 18, 2006

Dir. Michel Gondry

Starring Dave Chappelle, The Roots, The Fugees, Erykah Badu etc

Fresh from watching Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind we took on a totally different Gondry experience. Block Party is part road movie, part improv comedy, but most of all a concert movie.

Some of the negative bits: I had heard it was a feel-good experience, even for people who didn’t listen to / like hip-hop music, but I found it fairly uneven. I’ve listened to quite a bit of hip-hop, both more and less underground than the featured acts, and I found the mix a bit one-sided – mostly very established artists. It would have been fun to see more up-and-coming talent getting to spread some love. In the beginning of the movie Dave Chappelle invites a bunch of people from around where he lives in Ohio, in the way of ‘golden tickets’ that give the recipients a free ride and lodging in NY. While it may have been a cool premise, it didn’t really do much for the movie. Either there were just no interesting takers, or they didn’t have place for it in the theatrical edit. There’s a bit of goofing off with old folks, but it could have been a lot funnier. I suppose they’re just way too regular and loveable in Ohio.

On to the good notes: Chappelle is just a cool guy, and proved to be an excellent host. He makes for a good vibe throughout the movie, never letting it get boring, and plays well with others. The practice jam sessions with the house band and guests are very funny. And then there’s of course some laid-back and enjoyable music performances, Jill Scott is diverse and excellent for example.

Keywords: Concert, Brooklyn