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Under African Skies Photos

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Movie Info

Musician Paul Simon returns to South Africa for a reunion concert celebrating the 25th anniversary of his landmark album, "Graceland," which featured many African musicians.

Genre:

drama, documentary, biography, music, history
Original Language:

English
Director:

Joe Berlinger
Producer:

Joe Berlinger, Jon Kamen, Justin Wilkes
Release Date (Streaming):

Mar 23, 2017
Runtime:

1h 42m
Production Co:

Radical Media

Cast & Crew

Paul Simon

Maya Angelou

Harry Belafonte

David Byrne

Peter Gabriel

Philip Glass

Show all Cast & Crew

News & Interviews for Under African Skies

Critics Consensus: Dark Shadows Doesn’t Scare Up Enough Laughs

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Critic Reviews for Under African Skies

All Critics (16) | Top Critics (11) | Fresh (16)

The result is doubly satisfying: We get not only a trenchant political drama but a bang-up concert film as well.

May 11, 2012 | Rating: A- | Full Review…

Peter Rainer
Christian Science Monitor
The affection between the musicians and Simon is clear. The portrait that emerges time and again is personal and a reflection of the realities of apartheid.

May 10, 2012 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

Betsy Sharkey
Los Angeles Times
[It] does an excellent job of recapitulating the controversies surrounding the album's creation without bearing down too heavily on old news, while subtly taking Mr. Simon's side against his critics.

May 10, 2012 | Rating: 4/5

Stephen Holden
New York Times
It's a pleasant surprise that Under African Skies not only draws attention to the controversy surrounding its subject matter but digs into it a little.

May 10, 2012

Tim Grierson
Village Voice
A harmonious, fair-minded, energetic and enlightening portrait of one masterpiece's moment in time.

May 10, 2012 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

Joe Neumaier
New York Daily News
Powered by Paul Simon's brilliance, Under African Skies is a cultural lightning bolt that soars on its music and an unshakable belief in the transcendence of art.

May 10, 2012 | Rating: 3.5/4 | Full Review…

Peter Travers
Rolling Stone
UNDER AFRICAN SKIES is much smarter and more profound than most music documentaries. It's a powerful, beautifully executed film that entertains, informs and questions.

April 3, 2013 | Full Review…

Meredith Borders
Birth.Movies.Death.
It's a blissful film, this work by Berlinger and co., a sheer privilege for the viewer to spend such quality time UNDER AFRICAN SKIES.

December 28, 2012 | Rating: A | Full Review…

Jason Gorber
ScreenAnarchy
This absorbing documentary takes an up-close and intimate look at the musicians' creative process, then zooms out to recall the political turmoil that this landmark album left in its wake.

November 16, 2012 | Full Review…

Michael Sauter
Film Journal International
Under African Skies takes what could have been a puff piece glossing over the protestations related to Graceland and teaches the controversy.

August 17, 2012 | Rating: B- | Full Review…

Mark Pfeiffer
Reel Times: Reflections on Cinema
Berlinger's doc expertly captures the debate of the time and where it's at now, 25 years later.

March 18, 2012 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

Christopher Campbell
Movies.com