Review of Taking Woodstock (2009) by Jack G — 13 Mar 2010

This movie has its moments but it seems that Ang Lee is very hit and miss. Which is a shame. He goes from one of my favorite directors to one that produces movies I just watch in hopes of something outstanding. Sometimes I'm amazed. With this I'm just kinda lukewarm.

Danny Elfman's soundtrack was the real thing that stood out for me. He departed ways with his old tried and true bouncing feels with lots of trills and stacato for something that is more akin to the chaos of the movie overall.

And that is where my biggest complaint lies. This movie just never seems to pull itself together. This could have been Lees attempt at making the film feel for the moment in history it captures but it has been done before and much better. I think of Almost Famous certainly as a film that has that energy.

Not a bad movie and fun to watch if you are interested in Woodstock or just in the mood for a film about that era. In the end though this was clearly a rental or a borrow. I have a few friends I'll watch it with again but not something I would suggest across the board.