Muscle Shoals

2013, Documentary, 1h 51m

87 Reviews 5,000+ Ratings

What to know

critics consensus

Essential for soul fans and entertaining for novices, Muscle Shoals offers a compelling, warts-and-all glimpse at one of the most fascinating stories in modern American music. Read critic reviews

You might also like

See More
Assassins
Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché
An Honest Liar
Varda by Agnès
The Crash Reel

Where to watch

Rent/buy Rent/buy Rent/buy

Rate And Review

User image

Verified

  • User image

    Super Reviewer

    Rate this movie

    Oof, that was Rotten.

    Meh, it passed the time.

    It’s good – I’d recommend it.

    Awesome!

    So Fresh: Absolute Must See!

    What did you think of the movie? (optional)

  • You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.

  • User image

    Super Reviewer

    Step 2 of 2

    How did you buy your ticket?

    Let's get your review verified.

    • Fandango

    • AMCTheatres.com or AMC AppNew

    • Cinemark Coming Soon

      We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

    • Regal Coming Soon

      We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

    • Theater box office or somewhere else

    By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie.

    You're almost there! Just confirm how you got your ticket.

  • User image

    Super Reviewer

    Rate this movie

    Oof, that was Rotten.

    Meh, it passed the time.

    It’s good – I’d recommend it.

    Awesome!

    So Fresh: Absolute Must See!

    What did you think of the movie? (optional)

  • How did you buy your ticket?

    • Fandango

    • AMCTheatres.com or AMC AppNew

    • Cinemark Coming Soon

      We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

    • Regal Coming Soon

      We won’t be able to verify your ticket today, but it’s great to know for the future.

    • Theater box office or somewhere else

    By opting to have your ticket verified for this movie, you are allowing us to check the email address associated with your Rotten Tomatoes account against an email address associated with a Fandango ticket purchase for the same movie.

Muscle Shoals Photos

View All Photos (22)

Movie Info

Filmmaker Greg Camalier pays tribute to an Alabama city that holds a prominent place in music history. Artists who recorded at FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Ala., include Percy Sledge, Aretha Franklin and Lynyrd Skynyrd.
  • Rating:
    PG (Smoking|Language|Brief Partial Nudity|Thematic Elements)
  • Genre:
    Documentary
  • Original Language:
    English
  • Director:
    Greg "Freddy" Camalier
  • Release Date (Theaters):
     limited
  • Release Date (Streaming):
  • Box Office (Gross USA):
    $695.6K
  • Runtime:
  • Distributor:
    Magnolia Pictures

Cast & Crew

Stephen Badger
Self
Aretha Franklin
Self
Jerry Carrigan
Self
Alicia Keys
Self
Bono
Self
Jimmy Cliff
Self
Greg "Freddy" Camalier
Director
Matthew Freud
Executive Producer
Anthony Arendt
Cinematographer
Richard Lowe
Film Editing
Spooner Oldham
Original Music
Show all Cast & Crew

News & Interviews for Muscle Shoals

Parental Guidance: Non-Stop, Plus Gravity, Thor: The Dark World and Muscle Shoals
Critics Consensus: Rush and Don Jon Certified Fresh
Parental Guidance: Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 and Baggage Claim
View All

Critic Reviews for Muscle Shoals

All Critics (87) | Top Critics (40) | Fresh (84) | Rotten (3)
Full Review… Brad Newsome Sydney Morning Herald Full Review… Noah Berlatsky The Atlantic Full Review… David Hinckley New York Daily News Full Review… Geoffrey Macnab Independent (UK) Full Review… Mark Kermode Observer (UK) Full Review… Tara Brady Irish Times Full Review… Jordan M. Smith IONCINEMA.com Full Review… Andrew Martin The New York Review of Books Full Review… Daniel Green CineVue Full Review… Megan Basham WORLD Full Review… Craig D. Lindsey INDY Week Full Review… Jonathan Kiefer SF Weekly
View All Critic Reviews (87)

Audience Reviews for Muscle Shoals

  • Nov 11, 2013
    Documentary explaining how two studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama became hit factories, supplying us with number one singles from Percy Sledge, Aretha Franklin, the Rolling Stones, and others. This goes deeper into the music business and its history than the more celebrated 20 FEET FROM STARDOM, and Anthony Arendt's unexpectedly great cinematography makes this tiny hamlet and its environs into a character every bit as intriguing as the rural music moguls.
    Greg S Super Reviewer
  • Sep 29, 2013
    Shortly after streaming this music documentary I also streamed The Wrecking Crew. I have rated this one a full star higher because every part of it is simply a step above that other rock doc. The studio session musicians at the center of this doc produced more essential tracks for more hit records and artists. The storytelling aspect is more interesting with great interview clips and archival materials. FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama was ambitiously, independently managed by Rick Hall. It is thrilling if you only know the big name singers/bands who recorded songs at FAME to get a behind the scenes peek and meet the work horse session musicians who are actually responsible for the sounds we know and love.
    Byron B Super Reviewer
  • May 02, 2013
    There have been a tremendous amount of music documentaries created over the last five years and Muscle Shoals adds to that memorable list. Here deep in Alabama, a unique sound emerges causing all the big names in music to come, record and pay homage. This is also a homage to those individuals who stayed in the community and contributed to that greatness.
    John B Super Reviewer
See All Audience reviews

Movie & TV guides

View All