More about this DVD  •  DVD Info  •  Movie Main Page  •  Message Board

Nowadays, bottom-line minded corporations blow their wad on an artist's debut album, then give all their attention to the debut album of the next band, until pop becomes littered with dozens of Fiona Apples. In the summer of 1965, Bob Dylan was about to embark on his first electric tour. As legend has it, Dylan's manager Albert Grossman suggested he hire Robbie Robertson and Levon Helm for his backup band. Dylan checked them out, liked what he heard and went on tour with them. By September of 1965, Dylan had hired Robertson's other musical partners, consisting of Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Garth Hudson. As a result, the ultimate rock group was born: Bob Dylan and the Band.

While on tour, Dylan was booed mercilessly for giving up his acoustic sound, which in turn, led some to think The Band was ruining his career. But to his great credit, he stuck with them. In 1968, Capitol Records released The Band's debut album, Music from Big Pink, which included The Weight and I Shall Be Released. Over the course of seven albums, all released by Capitol (I'm not including the three albums the group released in the 90's, since they did not include Richard Manuel, who hanged himself in 1986 and Robertson), they became absolutely iconic. Songs like Up on Cripple Creek and The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down were bluesy, literate and lyrically challenging, with a sound that seemed practically dug up from old Kentucky soil.

In 1976, The Band decided to stop touring. They announced that after their summer tour ended, they would play one last show on Thanksgiving at Winterland in San Francisco. Invited to the show were numerous rock legends who had influenced The Band's music, including Dylan, Van Morrison, Neil Young, Muddy Waters, Eric Clapton and Ringo Starr. Martin Scorsese, who was in the middle of shooting New York, New York, agreed to film the concert as a documentary that would become The Last Waltz. It would be the first rock concert shot in 35mm and the first to use a 24-track recording system. Scorsese was no stranger to concerts films; he was editor of Woodstock. Also impressive was that two of the film's seven camera operators were cinematographers Laszlo Kovacs (Easy Rider and New York, New York) and Vilmos Zsigmond (Close Encounters of the Third Kind). Even the production design (which included chandeliers from Gone with the Wind) is by Boris Leven, who also designed West Side Story.

The songs showcased in The Last Waltz represent an amazing contradiction: the star power on display was unbelievable, yet the performers were humble and unpretentious. None of The Band were over forty years old when they performed this concert, but they were old souls, musically wise beyond their years. Maybe that's why there is a pervasive sense of sadness about The Last Waltz. "Sixteen years on the road is long enough", said Robertson during an interview conducted by Scorsese. And the band definitely seems tired. They don't play tired, they play wonderfully, but the whole affair, with the classy environs, the all-star guests and the deep, earthy quality of the music, seemed to herald the end of an era for both themselves and for rock. And they obviously knew it. Everyone, including Neil Young (who sings Helpless) and Van Morrison (who performs Caravan) is careful not to stray from the original material, lest they make a mistake and sully what was destined to become a rock and roll time capsule. This makes every song a celebration and, in a sense, a eulogy. And looking back on it, The Last Waltz was not only a eulogy for a great musical act. It was a eulogy for all that was heartfelt and beautiful about rock and roll.

Video: How Does The Disc Look?

The Last Waltz is presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. As stated earlier, The Last Waltz was the first rock concert shot in 35mm, so the bar was raised in this case. And the results are impressive. Although a bit muted, the colors look fresh and fully saturated. There is no bleeding or tearing in any of the colors. The clothes and the multi-hued backdrops contain the most color and they're all represented nicely, if not overwhelmingly vibrant. The rest of the picture is brown and gold. Occasionally, Scorsese shot into the lights, but this does not affect the picture quality in the least. Blacks are impressive considering the age of the film and the environment. Shadow detail is pretty clear. Low-light scenes contain some grain, but I'll bet it's the same amount of grain that appeared on the camera negative. Scorsese uses thrown shadows often and those shadows are rendered nicely. There was the occasional white speck, but there were no edge enhancements. In all, great job by MGM Home Entertainment.

Audio: How Does the Disc Sound?

MGM has created a new 5.1 Dolby digital soundtrack for the DVD. This is in addition to the original 2.0 stereo surround track. Unlike most DVDs, where one audio mix is superior to the other, here each track has its advantages. I found the 5.1 terrifically enveloping. There is great separation between the channels, with each instrument accurately located within the soundscape. There was some panning in the vocals, which were well done.

However, purists may feel the 5.1 is too artificially separated for their tastes. It's true that the 2.0 is probably closer to the original movie experience, but I preferred the overall acoustic experience of the 5.1. Both options are very sold. Vocals are clear and distinct. The crowd is mixed down and appropriately melded with the band. The highs, especially the numerous guitar solos, are razor sharp. Bass is not as floor-rattling as I would have preferred, but it's not bad. Dialogue during the interview segments is quite clear with, at times, a slight echo, giving the material the right documentary feel. Amazingly, there are no source defects to speak of: no hiss, no distortion, no dropout.

Also included are English Closed Captions and English, French and Spanish subtitles. I would have greatly appreciated subtitles for the song lyrics, but none are provided. Only the interviews and the between-song chatter are subtitled.

Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

MGM and Automat Pictures have created a set of wonderful extras that help make this DVD a real experience. First off, there are two audio commentaries. The first is from Robertson and Scorsese, and Robertson's commentary is scene-specific. He's watching the film as he speaks. Scorsese's comments, however, are lifted from a sit-down interview and edited in with Robertson. Although it's a bit of a disappointment to not have these two brilliant men playing off each other, the commentary is still interesting. Those expecting stories of drunken rock and roll debauchery won't find it here. Robertson discusses how the group, the final concert and the movie all came about, while Scorsese explains how he drew on his keen sense of film history to design the production and direct the film. The second audio commentary is one of the most unique I've come across. It starts with rock scholar Greil Marcus, Band tour manger John Taplin and writer/Scorsese collaborator Jay Cocks. The threesome is very articulate in discussing why The Band was so special and how each song fits into the group's overall musical philosophy. But as the commentary continues, different voices introduce themselves: Levon Helm, Ronnie Hawkins, Dr. John...each raspy, world-weary, rock and roll survivor chimes in to discuss his participation in The Last Waltz. And they are all quite honest regarding performance mistakes and other oddities that occurred during the show. Hearing from musicians who, quite frankly, I thought were dead, was a great surprise and a great pleasure. It makes this second audio commentary something special. And in order to avoid confusion, a menu option allows for a subtitle that indicates who is speaking.

Next is Stephen Altobello's very nice, brand new 22-minute featurette called Revisiting The Last Waltz. Although it moves fast, there is a lot of ground covered. The piece includes interviews with Scorsese and Robertson. Both gentlemen repeat some of the information heard in the audio commentary, however there are great visuals that make the mini- doc worth watching. For instance, Scorsese went into the concert extremely well-prepared. In fact, he had every shot and lighting cue matched to every lyric. And he had it all on paper. The shots of this "script" are fascinating, as are the production design drawings by Boris Leven. Scorsese, as usual, is a fast and fascinating talker. He discusses the rigors of filming such a long event. Cameras ran out of film constantly and Scorsese had to hope nothing worthwhile happened during a film change. One interesting story involves Muddy Water's performance of Mannish Boy. Scorsese famously covered Water's performance with only one camera. However, there was a reason for that: every cameraman was taking a break, except Laszlo Kovacs, the only cameraman still at his station.

Aficionados of The Last Waltz will be beside themselves when they check out a 12-minute clip of rare unseen footage from the concert. The only archival material available, it's a jam session featuring Paul Butterfield, Clapton, Dr. John, Helm, Hudson, Robertson, Ringo Starr, Stephen Stills, Ron Wood and Neil Young. This is strictly an informal jam session of the 12-bar blues variety, but damn if it's not a wonderful sight to see so many rock icons riffing together purely for fun. The audio is presented in both 2.0 stereo and 5.1 Surround. Like the film itself, the 5.1 is fuller, with good, but not great bass action. Although overall, the color is a tad dull, the picture is fully saturated, and very colorful. There is the occasional scratch, but considering this footage has probably been sitting in a vault for 25 years, it looks amazing. It's obvious why this footage wasn't included in the film, however it's presence here is extremely appreciated.

Next is terrific photo gallery broken into four sections: The Concert, The Studio Shoots, The NYC Premiere and Posters & Lobby Cards. Many of the photos include captions. This is especially helpful in trying to read the commemorative handbill, which was passed out to all 5000 fans in attendance at Winterland. The NYC Premiere photos include the likes of Robert DeNiro, boxer Jake LaMotta and a very young Susan Sarandon. Also included is the theatrical trailer and one TV spot. The trailer is presented letterboxed and it shows a bit of wear. The TV spot is full screen and looks better than the trailer. Finally, there is an eight-page booklet written by Robbie Robertson. For those not familiar with The Band and renting this DVD on a whim, read it. It's a concise, well-written overview of the group with information on how the film came about.

DVD-ROM Exclusives: What do you get when you pop the disc in your PC?

No ROM extras have been included.

Parting Thoughts