Glastonbury the Movie

As a music fan I know all about the "Glastonbury Festival." Also I am big fan of 90s music so I was excited to watch this doc. I was expecting some live footage and some interviews, but instead I was treated to something different and more entertaining.

The thing that makes this film so unique is the focus it places on the normal festival goers and their experience at the Festival. in between the performances, characters are followed, giving them story arcs as their experiences are shared. The one that stuck out was "Charlie the Drummer" he shows up in a beat up van trying to play, plays and then attends the festival. Stories like this fit nicely against the backdrop of classic music from "The Verve" "Porno for Pyros" and "Spirtyalized" making "Glastonbury: In Flashback" a worthy watch!

So many other films and television programs always seem to miss the best aspect of Glastonbury festival but this one truly hits the mark.

To be somewhat out of step with popular opinion, Glastonbury isn't really about the bands. Don't get me wrong; the performers were/are good but they have always been a minor distraction from the bulk of the experience...the life of the festival itself.

As the years have rolled on by and the mainstream has co-opted Glastonbury for a more commercially digestible agenda, much of what makes Glastonbury exceptional has been deemed irrelevant, unimportant and even unacceptable.

This film shows you the full experience. It's the genuine life of the festival with occasional musical interludes and not a concert movie with occasional life interludes.

The unhurried wandering around the various fields, down the main drag, witnessing the people who truly "make" the festival. The impromptu dance parties, the food, the stalls, the sights, sounds and smells of an LSD soaked amble around the various fields in the wee small hours. On the first night I always loved loading up chemically and getting totally lost for hours, having weird adventures in and out of tents/cafes/temporary stages which you would most likely never find again. No other Glastonbury film has caught that experience so perfectly.

This is the stuff that stays with you for the rest of your life. This is what's really unique to the Glastonbury festival.

If you just want to watch a compilation of bands then this film is definitely not for you.

If you want to relive the heady uniqueness that actually raises Glastonbury above all the other "glorified concert" festivals then this certainly IS the film you've been looking for.

The annual Glastonbury Festival has been a British institution for over 30 years. This movie captures the spirit of the festival in the 1990s, but the earlier movie "Glastonbury Fayre", featuring the 2nd festival in 1971, appeals more to me, both for its mood (somehow more innocent than the 90s version) and the music. However I may be biased, as I was there and appear on the edge of the screen for about one second! Also the music of the late 60s and early 70s is more to my taste than the performers in the later movie, so don't let me put you off the later one if you don't share my tastes. Both movies, like "Woodstock", focus on the audience and the happenings around the grounds as well as on the music.

For some reason, Glastonbury Fayre seems to have slipped into obscurity since its original theatrical release. It was briefly released on VHS in the UK a few years ago, and I believe got one TV showing. It would be nice if someone could resurrect it on DVD.