Western Stars

Bruce Springsteen now has behind him over half a century of career, but he looks fantastic, he is in full physical and vocal form - the fact that he has always played in low tones and a little rough, helps him at this age. His 19th album, 'Western Stars' is accompanied by a concert filmed in a former barn on one of his farms, but Springsteen (who is also a co-director) intended more than just to produce a filmed concert. Each song is prefaced by an explanation or story that clarifies the music and the text, and presents the context of what we are about to hear. In addition, he inserts between songs filmed sequences, some archive clips documenting Springsteen's life, others landscapes of the agricultural or wild American nature, a little bit in the style of the Marlboro commercials from 40-50 years ago (including many horses). Springsteen talks about his life, about his loves and separations, about cars and horses, about America's plains and metropolises, and especially about the people who populate them.

His music is closer today to folk than to rock. For this record and for the filmed concert, Springsteen brought his orchestra with string instruments to his usual musicians (first of all guitarist and singer Patti Scialfa, his close collaborator and since 1991 his wife). I do not like the combination of folk and violins, nor does it work very well here, in my opinion, except for 2-3 songs, with a touch closer to pop-rock. But there are many others viewers, I suspect, that will be delighted. The concert is very well filmed, the spoken part adds, but without containing too many deep sayings, the filmed interludes seemed commercial and looking for easy aesthetics. I can bet that many of Bruce Springsteen's fans will enjoy this movie and overwhelm it with superlatives. We, the others, can enjoy a well-filmed concert, and we can also find out a few more things about a singer who still remains after this movie, outside of my list of favorite musicians.

This was a beautiful movie. Bruce takes us into his thoughts and motivations behind the writing and symbolism of Western Stars. The scenery was gorgeous and the musical arrangements were stunning.

Western Stars is an emotional and intimate collection of songs. The songs are all excellent and performed beautifully by Bruce Springsteen himself. It's well paced and Bruce Springsteen and Thom Zimny's direction is incredible as the film is extremely well filmed and visually stunning in parts. Bruce is also an excellent storyteller.

Instead of touring his latest album, Bruce Springsteen made this movie of its contents. It was mostly recorded in his century-old barn, with a 30-piece orchestra, some new vocal arrangements by Patti Scialfa, and an audience of a few friends and the horses in the stables below.

Each song is introduced by Bruce, often as a voiceover as various images play, some of which are Bruce's archival photos or home movie clips. The lynchpin song is Western Stars, about an old cowboy still going on, when many of his contemporaries have left their boots (a song likely to be self-referential, given his approaching 70th birthday).

I saw this film at the Toronto International Film Festival, but not at the premium-priced world premiere, so Bruce had already left, leaving fellow director Thom Zimmy to answer questions. Bruce's directorial contributions included writing and producing the song introductions, and co-selecting the archival material to include. The intros make it feel that this album is a collection of poems set to music. With songs about cars, trains, heartbreak, and love, I wonder if someone will do a full country re-creation of the material. The film ends with a bonus song (that fits the overall theme), which is more upbeat than Moonlight Motel.

Even being only casually acquainted with Bruce's music, I found this film fascinating. It is probably a must-see for actual fans, especially those who have already memorized the lyrics. It is expected to open commercially October 25.

Previously not a fan, but now I get it!

This was a very engaging documentary/concert. I had not realized Bruce was such a philosopher and poet. His narration was wonderful and really set up his songs to make them more meaningful. Be sure to stay through all the credits to the supplemental footage at the end.