Uncle Meat

As I have been a long time fan of Frank Zappa's music, I figured he would approach film with the same satirical sense of humour that often accompanies his music. Boy, was I right! This trippy film, which was started in 1967 as a low (no)budget Science Fiction film (with concert sequences by Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention) quickly turned into a cinema verite free for all (i.e. the plot was tossed into the dustbin and became a cinematic stream of consciness affair). The film seems to be divided up into a series of episodes, featuring various members of the Mothers in different roles. This film could be confusing to the first timer that is new to Zappa (it was filmed over a 20 year period,and the whole blob was converted to video format,for home video consumption). Anyone who purchased the original soundtrack record album in 1969 will recognize some of the music that was written for the film (tho,not all of the music on the record was used---in fact,a good block of the music is not used). Worth seeking out for the hard core Zappa fan.

There is a method to Zappa's madness. One thing a lot of people haven't picked up on in reviewing this film is that there are two soundtracks playing simultaneously throughout. Sometimes it's a delay of roughly ten seconds. Other times it's a whole other soundtrack entirely. To really enjoy the film, one must ignore the soundtrack that corresponds with the images. Of course, that's like telling you not to think of a pink elephant. I watched this with headphones on. Like listening to any great album, headphones are the way to go with UNCLE MEAT - be it the album or the movie.

One thing people have pointed out is that Frank reportedly wasn't on drugs when he directed this. However, it's apparent from watching it (and other Zappa films) that many of those who worked with Frank were. He merely turned his cameras on them. Andy Warhol did the same thing with his group. So was Frank exploiting them? Was Andy? Maybe the reason there was a rivalry between the two camps has to do with how similar these two artists were in there approach to film-making. By contrast, Warhol was far more minimalist in his approach while Zappa was all about sensory overload. So there are times while watching a Zappa film one wishes he was a tad more minimalist and where Andy was concerned, the opposite is true.

One must also realize there's not only two soundtracks playing here, but two films as well. One is the documentary about the film and the other is the film itself. So there is more than merely a nod to the Maysles' GIMME SHELTER in UNCLE MEAT with all the cuts to the editing room.

I reiterate, if only Zappa had paid more attention to Warhol's films and learned to bring things to a minimum at times, this film might be more accessible. But then that's like suggesting if only Stan Brakhage had used sound more often or Jean-Luc Goddard fewer jump cuts. To each filmmaker his own, in other words. If you are a fan of Zappa's, don't miss this one. It makes a fine prequel to 200 MOTELS even though it was completed later.

If you are a fan of the original Mothers of Invention this film is a must see. Frank Zappa takes us back to the early days of the Mothers using personal archive footage of himself and the band on the road. This film is a prequel to Zappa's Masterpiece 200 Motels. Highlights of this movie are a Home movie montage of Electric Aunt Jemima and a live performance of Frank and the Mothers at the Royal Albert Hall in London England plus the fun side of being on the road and of course Don Preston as the Monster. I wish the Zappa Family Trust would release this Movie on a DVD because this Film is a must for any Mothers of Invention Fan....Mary Peterpuffer March 16 2008.

There is nothing else that can be said about this movie. Weird. The scary part is that Zappa wasn't on drugs when he made this movie...he wasn't on drugs ever. But still...my God. Highlights include the ingenue lead beating drummer Aynsley Dunbar with a toilet brush (at his request) in the grocery store, and Don Preston turning into a monster (which essentially translates into "making a strange face.") And really, was full frontal nudity of this man really necessary? One scene in the movie has Zappa gathering cast and crew together to deliver some bad news: "the movie's got a plot." You'd never be able to tell this from watching it. Other than a conglomeration of truly weird sexual activities, that is. If you go buy the album, you will find that nearly all of the film's dialogue is on the disc: it won't make any more sense, whether you hear the disc or watch the film. Promise.

The liner notes printed on the box probably are all you need to read to get a handle on this movie, arguably stranger than "200 Motels", which describe this film as what it was like to experience an original Mothers of Invention stage performance from upfront and behind.

To understand this film only a little better, and this cannot be stressed more, one should read Billy James' "Necessity Is ... The Early Years of Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention" to get a better grip on what "Uncle Meat" is all about. The book will inform the casual listener and longtime Zappa fan of the often surprising history of this understandably misunderstood bunch of mad hats.

The segments that are the most entertaining are some 20 minutes of live footage at The Garrick Theatre in New York City and a brief glimpse of a disastrous show played in Berlin in 1968, the very subject of the song "Holiday in Berlin" from the posthumous "Burnt Weeny Sandwich" album.

Longtime multi-instrumentalist Mother Don Preston is "Uncle Meat", a sort of Master of Ceremonies who, with James "Motorhead" Sherwood, himself a longtime member and high school chum of Frank Zappa's, try to clarify the Mothers' place as non-conformist instigators of alternative entertainment. Through selective flashback and totally incoherent sketches, Preston and Sherwood guide us through a few of the myths that made The Mothers one of the most outrageous and bold bands to ever come out of The 1960s.

Thick with characteristic in-jokes and road humor, the movie tries to become the weirdness that was life on the road. Most importantly, the live segments, by far the most worthwhile moments which appear mostly in the first third of the film, reveal in song and sketch how the musicians' lives affected and informed the music they played. In this way, the film reveals how utterly organic and in the moment The Mothers of Invention were, before Zappa fired the first band to make way for successive and more popular bands, though perhaps less satisfying.

Part of the confusion here is that we have absolutely no idea of who's who, save Zappa himself and maybe one or two others; worse, the film was largely shot between the time of the firing of The Mothers Mk 1 and 2, hence the involvement of replacement drummer Ansley Dunbar, placing the actual date at 1970. Beware - don't expect a biopic. In fact, much of the film seems a stream of consciousness, so what we really have here is a home movie of the band shot by professional photographers. One must wonder if there was any script at all. There certainly was liberal editing, and one can't help but think that this whole endeavor could have been cut down to about a half-hour, because the pacing will try the patience of the most rabid fan. Really - it's that boring at times. Rule #1 for Entertainers: Never EVER be boring.

If my interpretation of this movie is totally off the mark, and "Uncle Meat" is just an elaborate put-on, I can accept that, because I'll always have the music to fall back on. If not, then one of Zappa's best remembered lines can describe "Uncle Meat" to a T: "No Commercial Potential".

Cheers: Interesting early Mothers stage performances; some funny home movies; some rare interesting insights on the band

Caveats: Absolutely no lineage; long and extremely boring interludes

This Mothers fan rates "Uncle Meat" Two Stars.