Review of Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021) by Bertobellamy — 30 Nov 2021
"You know, it's funny. You put memories away, and sometimes you don't even know if they're real.".
For me, that final quote encompasses the whole documentary, which recovers amazing footage of the Harlem Cultural Festival. Questlove does an amazing job at assembling a complete view of the historic event, and not just the concerts, but the context around it.
What surprises me more is that this material was almost forgotten, which sustains the discourse in the film about the danger of black history getting erased.
The way the performances are weaved together with interviews and the archive footage feels very organic, and the best thing about it is that the music just doesn't stop; so, in a way, you could see this as a musical.
An Academy Award nomination is incoming.
This review of Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021) was written by Bertobellamy on 30 Nov 2021.
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) has generally received very positive reviews.
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