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Festival Express (2004)
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Reviews Counted:74
Fresh:71
Rotten:3
Average Rating:7.6/10
Consensus: Festival Express is a spellbinding documentary that nostalgically chronicles five days in the summer of 1970, when a train full of now- legendary rock perfomers jammed its way across Canada.
Theatrical Release:Jul 23, 2004 Limited
Box Office: $908,932
Synopsis: In 1970, a train journeyed across Canada carrying some of the greatest rock bands of the time. Janis Joplin, The Band, The Grateful Dead, Delaney & Bonnie, Buddy Guy, Ian & Sylvia and others lived... In 1970, a train journeyed across Canada carrying some of the greatest rock bands of the time. Janis Joplin, The Band, The Grateful Dead, Delaney & Bonnie, Buddy Guy, Ian & Sylvia and others lived (and partied) together for five days, giving concerts where and when they stopped. The train was called the Festival Express. Festival Express might just have been the greatest, and certainly the longest, non-stop rock n' roll party ever. Nicknamed "The Million Dollar Bash" by Rolling Stone magazine, Festival Express was designed to capitalise on the then-burgeoning craze for multi-day, talent-heavy music festivals. Following in the footsteps of Woodstock, by the summer of 1970 such festivals were a regular part of the rock n' roll landscape. Festival Express was planned as a festival with a difference -- it would be portable. The artists would be showcased at festival sites spanning the breadth of the Canadian heartland, from Toronto to Calgary -- and transportation was by chartered train. This proved to be a stroke of genius, indelibly stamping the event with an aura of magic, as a large number of the performers signed on despite being offered fees substantially below their going rate. The musicians thought the train ride sounded like the "party to end all parties". -- © Festival Express Productions [More]
Starring: Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, Band, Ian & Sylvia
Starring: Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, Band, Ian & Sylvia, Buddy Guy, Flying Burrito Brothers, Sha Na Na, Delaney & Bonnie
Director: Bob Smeaton
Director: Bob Smeaton
Producer: John Trapman
Studio: ThinkFilm
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Release:
Nov 2, 2004
Reviews for Festival Express
A good snapshot of an earlier, simpler, more innocent time that seems now even longer ago than it was.
The music was fabulous--a reason enough to cherish this first-rate documentary.
Both drive-thru snapshot travelogue of nomad alternative culture, and one-of-a-kind caught moments of intimate jam sessions.
It captures a pure moment in time when musical hearts and minds beat as one, when musicians of all stripes came together to work and play hard and leave behind one damn fine-looking corpse.
Divided between time-capsule concert footage ... and backward-glancing interviews - alas, not enough of the former and too much of the latter.
A fascinating, tuneful excursion into the Woodstock Nation, circa 1970.
A rock 'n' roll time capsule that may be the final, great chronicle of the musical brilliance of the late 1960s.
A remarkable cultural document that captures the circus-like atmosphere and the raw and immediate quality of the performances.
From the moment Joplin announces her arrival in the film she holds you rapt under her spell.
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