Passing Strange (Spike Lee, 2009)

[greggster59]

It's a shame that Lee's document of a highly original and very entertaining musical went straight to DVD with little notice. I caught this during its Broadway run. While musical theater is not my particular cup of tea this is one I could watch over and over and still enjoy. More of a rock concert with a story than a musical play.

Spike Lee managed to capture the energy of the material and the enormous talents of the cast with his camera. He even conveyed the upbeat energy of the audience's participation in an effective way. In lesser hands it might have just come off as hokey. The only misstep, IMHO, is that he follows the cast backstage during the intermission, thus briefly breaking the play's spell.

Check it out. It's a different ride than the usual Broadway fare.

[royalton]

I loved it as well.

What a terrible "me too" post, sorry, but that is the long and short of it. So many of the current musicals feel thin, like Fela or even Spring Awakening in its second half; this was just right and managed to feel like it was treading new ground even when it wasn't.

[Numero Trois]

The only misstep, IMHO, is that he follows the cast backstage during the intermission, thus briefly breaking the play's spell.

I had misgivings about that sequence at first. But it's only a few minutes long, much shorter than the actual intermission at the show. And it's in keeping with the rest of the play, where the fourth wall is broken(or at least acknowledged) a lot of the time.

The funny thing about this film is that it does seem to draw a few negative customer reviews on Netflix, Amazon and elsewhere from more Broadway oriented people. I don't know, maybe they're not attuned to rock music or something. Or maybe they think Stew should show Broadway more "respect."

But yeah, it's a fine show, not just musically but scriptwise as well. And the punk rock sequence was a blast. Not a perfect film, but there are a few moments that can stack up with the decade's best.

[greggster59]

Numero Trois quote
"The funny thing about this film is that it does seem to draw a few negative customer reviews on Netflix, Amazon and elsewhere from more Broadway oriented people. I don't know, maybe they're not attuned to rock music or something. Or maybe they think Stew should show Broadway more "respect." "


A friend who worked on the show thought that some of what you say, along with the frequent use of profanity made this too much of an odd duck for the larger Broadway audience. Also, the economy was starting to hit the rocks that summer (2008) and theater attendance was down in general.

[hearthesilence]

It's a shame that Lee's document of a highly original and very entertaining musical went straight to DVD with little notice.

That film got a brief theatrical run in NY (which I missed). I may have played in Chicago too, but I doubt it was in the theaters long. The reviews were good, but yeah, the film didn't get a huge push...

[Henry B]

I recently viewed Spike Lee's "Passing Strange" on PBS' "Great Performances" series. A co-worker had seen the play on Broadway and highly recommended it at the time he saw it. He did a wise thing by not going into any great detail and leaving me with low expectations while watching it on PBS. I was awed by the concept of a rock musical with black performers that somehow seemed very universal. Never expected to see black people engaging in "intellectual conversation" about Godard and other European filmmakers along with the whole European experience of "Passing Strange" from a black or rather very universal viewpoint. I soon ordered the DVD to relive the experience and it was amazing watching it again, this time I was able to watch it more slowly for subtle things, whereas the first time it just hit me with sensory overload, so to speak. Thank You Spike Lee and "Stew" for presenting this.