Taking Woodstock (DVD)

* Film Only* As a certain observant Dooyoo member kindly pointed out in one of his reviews the other day that I was around in the 60s I thought it only fitting that I should write a review of Ang Lee's new and engaging film, Taking Woodstock, and tell you what it is all about because I am sure a lot of Dooyoo readers won't be able to remember this iconic event. Taking Woodstock is based on a story written by Tom Monte and Elliot Tiber; A True Story of a Riot, a Concert, and a Life. The film introduces us to this historical event through the eyes of a Jewish boy who is loosely connected but an important part of the entire undertaking. Let's say, the ...  Read the complete review

Ask me which decade I'd like to have lived in during the 20th century, and the answer would undoubtedly be the 60's. The assassination of Kennedy, the Vietnam War, champion Muhammad Ali being deposed only for his conscientious objection, Che Guevara's rise and fall as communism's international revolutionary, the unbeatable Beatles, England winning the World Cup - and of course, the hippy movement which in America culminated in the Woodstock Festival. Ang Lee's film is very much a "behind the scenes" offering, telling the story of Elliot Teichberg (played by stand-up comedian Demetri Martin), a young Jewish interior designer of Russian emigre stock, ...  Read the complete review

Most of what Ang Lee's new film, Taking Woodstock, sets out to do it does so very well. The problem, however, is what it doesn't wish to accomplish. There is no desire in this story to be compelling, exciting, or something new and fresh. All of the iconic images and symbols we associate with Woodstock 1969 are here front and centre . Armed with a checklist of memorable Woodstock moments, director Lee copies and pastes whatever tidbits he found interesting and tries to form a narrative. Characters, or caricatures, come in, set the time period, wave, and exit. I was all set to absolutely love this film. I've always been curious about the Woodstock experience, ...  Read the complete review

Ang Lee is as eclectic a filmmaker as you're likely to find these days; he's written superb family dramas, such as The Ice Storm, Chinese martial arts epics such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, superhero films like Hulk, and even the gay drama Brokeback Mountain. Here, he tackles another beast altogether, a stoner movie of another variety, in Taking Woodstock. The film takes place in 1969, depicting the exploits of Elliot Tiber, a young Greenwich Village interior designer. A theatre troupe (who happen to be hippies) called The Earthlight Players rent the property that his parents hire out, and although his parents aren't too happy about hiring it out to ...  Read the complete review

Taking Woodstock is a super little comedy and while I have no personal experience of the event and very little knowledge of the musical festival I did find the subject matter fascinating and there are some good laughs to be had from this film. The film is directed by Ange Lee and it tells the story of Elliot Tiber who was instrumental in establishing the Woodstock festival back in the 1960's. The opening of the film finds him helping his parents to run their family business which is a hotel however things are not going well, in fact things are bad that his father contemplates arson in order to cash in on the insurance payout. In an attempt to improve things ...  Read the complete review