My Dinner with Jimi

I smiled through the whole film. The music is great. The story-telling is great. It's a wonderful film. This picture is made with respect and a true love of the sixties.

Superb and charming. Justin Henry is beautiful as a blissed out and mischievous Howard Kaylan, lead singer for the top ten hit making band, The Turtles. The real magic is the titular sequence with an academy award worthy turn by Royale Watkins. A performance that completely captures the mystical and yet down to earth Jimi Hendrix. Not many films, unbelievably so, can find the essence of a special moment in a life and times. I'd like to see this available at any home video retail outlet without any hassle. Uh..what's the deal?

Thanks Eddie. A worthy addition to the history of the psychedelic sixties. A definite twinkle in the mind's eye.

I had never heard of this movie until it came on Amazon Prime in 2019 and as someone who was alive during the 60's it was wonderful.

Howard Kaylan presents a very tongue in cheek look at his experiences with the Turtles at the point of their first "Big Hit" and tour of England in 1967. Meeting all the usual suspects and their British Invasion heros in 1967 London The Turtles were shocked to find feet of clay in meeting The Beatles, a musical group that were at the height of their power with the release of Sgt Pepper's lonely hearts club band coming the day after the events in the movie.

All the characters are played by actors with various degrees of success. Some come across as caricatures of their public personas. Then again it is all filtered through Howard Kaylan's memory and his well known degree of snark.

Partner Turtle, Mark Volman comes across as a buffoon and is relegated to the background mostly except when singing.

Donovan is a mystic hippie, John Lennon is an insufferable guy. Paul is polite and fun, George just tries to keep John from being an insufferable guy. Ringo is kind of drunk. Meeting Brian Jones (Rolling Stones) in an alley way leads to being introduced to Jimi Hendrix and the subsequent dinner with Jimi, really more of a way to many drinks before eating kind of gabfest for Jimi.

Jimi is a sympathetic and humble man in this portrait, beset by the same insecurities that Howard has about success and acceptance by the audience..

A wonderful filtered by time remembrance by one who was there.

How sad that after being one of the better known groups of the time and having hits, the most interesting thing in your life was meeting other famous people.

Time has not been kind to the band. All the other bands in the film are well remembered, constantly played, numerous bios and documentaries, thought of as long lasting art. The Turtles get brief mentions, seem almost one hit wonders though they were not.

There were some amusing moments that are familiar from other films. The whole trope about young band overwhelmed by first taste of fame. But it's been done many times, and better.

MY DINNER WITH JIMI is a glimpse at Howard Kaylan's giddy and vertiginous ride to fame with his 60's Folk-Rock band, The Turtles. The Turtles were kind of a 'second tier' act during the sixties, but the film clearly demonstrates that they could eat, drink, and party with the Titans of Hippie Culture. And, not only that, they had the musical chops to back it up. Many of the stellar acts of the era are seen as they interact with the band at work and at play. This provides my only complaint about the film. Almost from the beginning of the movie, one sees that it is nearly impossible to find actors who can convincingly impersonate such recognizable stars. Too often during the film, I felt that I was watching an engaging exhibition of phony wigs and mustaches. But, if you are a fan of the music of The Turtles, or The Swinging 60's, in general-this might be the film for you. And, don't forget to view The Extras. There is a very funny (and informative) bit by band members, Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan, about their disastrous experiences with managers and agents.