Monterey the rock festival still stands in the shadows of the bigger and gaudier Woodstock, but "Monterey Pop" the film has no rival as a time capsule of late-'60s rock."
D.A. Pennebaker's documentary was smarter, hipper and more musical than other rock films of the era. Yes, that includes the endlessly celebrated "Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music
The Criterion Collection gave "Monterey Pop" its due back in 2006 with a carefully crafted DVD box set. Now, the label is back with the movie in high definition video and lossless sound.
Disc 1 of Criterion's Blu-ray box brings together a fully restored version of the original film and several hours of bonus performances. Disc 2 has the two spinoff films starring Jimi Hendrix and Otis Redding.
"The Complete Monterey Pop Festival
Audio and video easily pass the acid test. An A-B comparison of the Janis Joplin showstopper "Ball and Chain" was fairly dramatic, with the Blu-ray (DTS-HD MA) boasting a much more musical audio experience than the DVD.
The separation in original engineer Eddie Kramer's 5.1 mix felt even more vivid yet better balanced, while the instrumental shrillness that runs throughout the soundtrack was mitigated. Joplin's voice had better presence and came across as much warmer.
Rear channels give off stadium ambiance, instrument echoes and audience cheers, making for an open, you-are-there vibe. Likewise, the HD video taken from the original 16mm negatives looks flower-child fresh, with almost none of the deterioration that plagued pre-2006 "Monterey Pop" videos.
The upgrade to high definition seemed to tame the grain a bit, but the 16mm stock clearly limits what could be done. (Audio and video on the outtakes have significantly rougher edges, including a lot of hair on the lenses.)
"Monterey" was, remarkably, the work of a filmmaker without a clue. New Yorker D.A. Pennebaker knew nothing of the bands he was filming or of the world-changing events unfolding before his cameras in 196
"I was the most ignorant person there," Pennebaker recalls in his commentary. "It was a strange kind of Martian adventure for me."
"Monterey Pop" captured the hippie music scene at a time closer to the Newport of Dylan than the chaos of the big Eastern rock fests. Many acts were folkies making the transition to rock, accomplished performers right at home on Monterey's small, traditional stage. The mixed bag of performers included hitmakers the Mamas and the Papas, Simon and Garfunkel, Jefferson Airplane, Canned Heat, the Who and Buffalo Springfield.
Festival and film producer Lou Adler says Monterey provided the tipping point between the gentler "old guard" and the new wave of guitar-fueled psychedelia.
"The film had a lot of the energy of what was coming," he say
Several of the era's biggest acts -- notably the Beatles and Stones -- failed to make the scene in Northern California, leaving the glory to a pair of mostly unknown performers: Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix. The Blu-ray's revved-up audio echoes the shock of new from Joplin's "Ball and Chain" and Hendrix's "Wild Thing."
Time has been kind to many of Pennebaker's creative decisions. The inclusion of international acts Hugh Masekela and Ravi Shankar gives the film a contemporary musical tone. Otis Redding makes the cut, not Lou Rawls. Editing avoids the frantic cuts of rock clich
"It turned out to be the most extraordinarily dramatic piece of music we ever ran across," the director recalls. During editing, Pennebaker says, he resisted pressure from Mama Cass Elliot to cut the lengthy instrumental, saying nothing could possibly follow it. Writer Truman Capote, of all people, encouraged Pennebaker to retain the number and the ensuing ovation that provides the film's touching final moments.
The cinema verite enhances many of the film's charms: When Eric Burdon sings "Paint It, Black," Brian Jones walks among the crowd, unheralded. You either get it or you don't -- the camera moves on either way.
Adler, who partnered with Mamas and Papas frontman John Phillips to produce the festival, tells how a peace broke out between the rival rock factions of L.A. and San Francisco to facilitate the event.
Monterey was financed by network TV, with young ABC exec Barry Diller envisioning a musical special. Once fest organizers realized what they had, they deliberately screened Hendrix's R-rated performance for the ABC suits -- and were allowed to go elsewhere.
Outstanding outtakes on the set include Paul Butterfield, the Electric Flag, the Byrds and Laura Nyro. A bonus three-song segment from the Who features drummer Keith Moon at the peak of his crazed powers. The Mamas and the Papas close the show, and the bonus section, with what would be their next-to-last concert.
Extras include audio interviews with the late Phillips and other key performers, Pete Townshend discussing his famous backstage flap with Hendrix, and Tiny Tim performing in the green room, a piece of theater as trippy as anything ever cooked up in Haight Ashbury.
. The movie remained in limbo because of the usual Fab Four "rights issues," as with "Let It Be."
" on 
with a reproduction of Lester’s original annotated script, reproductions of eight lobby cards and a poster, plus a 60-page book with "rarely seen photographs" and production notes from the movie. 
" -- the movie and the classic Beatles song -- sound at once magical and familiar.
" a decent vamp on "Rear Window" featuring teen of the moment Shia LaBeouf. The translation of the "Rear Window" set-up in the age of cell phones, camcorders and laptops makes the first two reels fun and engaging. (A home detention monitor stands in for the leg cast.) "Disturbia's" action sequences are mostly by-the-numbers, alas. On 
the movie looks and sounds terrific. ... Come to think of it, so did 
all those years ago.
" and the concert film "
," both with hunks of extras. (Check out the 
with Donald Sutherland, a respectable remake worth revisiting every couple of years. Reminds me of 
remake, out on HD DVD.
season 2. "Pigs in Space," one of the best things ever televised, made its debut that season. Cue the round-mouthed announcer!
DVD. Warner Home Video joins the gig with an overhauled version of the concert film "The Song Remains the Same," this time packing in all 14 songs from the 1973 Madison Square Garden stand. Use of silly symbols on the press release signals that the lame "musicians' fantasy" segments remain. The good stuff includes souped-up 5.1 Dolby audio and 40 minutes of extras.
the "Raging Bull" of concert movies, opens with a knockout punch: Members of the Band, exhausted after six hours of nonstop performing, power into their final song, "Don't Do It." 
) The disc includes a commentary track by good friends Scorsese and Robertson, a second track with singer-drummer Levon Helm and other players from that night, as well as a surprisingly good 22-minute featurette, "Revisiting 'The Last Waltz.' " The widescreen presentation accommodates anamorphic playback, to dramatic effect.
and 
as the formats soak up the production's boldly colorful sets, costumes, lighting and bottom-shaking sonics.
an unusually good collection released last fall. To quote a label mate: Ain't nothing like the real thing, baby. 
and the ongoing problem of licensing pop songs from back in the day for current DVD release. The song snafus hit this DVD set particularly hard because its creators did such a good job integrating the music of 1978 and the dialogue. 
