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ASIN : B00002SWEM
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Editorial Reviews
From Amazon.co.uk
In 1996, composer, producer, and guitar legend Ry Cooder entered Egrem Studios in Havana with the forgotten greats of Cuban music, many of them in their 60s and 70s, some of them long since retired. The resulting album, Buena Vista Social Club, became a Grammy-winning international bestseller. When Cooder returned to Havana in 1998 to record a solo album by 72-year-old vocalist Ibrahim Ferrer, filmmaker Wim Wenders was on hand to document the occasion. Wenders splits the film between portraits of the performers, who tell their stories directly to the camera as they wander the streets and neighbourhoods of Havana, and a celebration of the music heard in performance scenes in the studio, in their first concert in Amsterdam, and in their second and final concert at Carnegie Hall. The songs are too often cut short in this fashion, but Buena Vista Social Club is not a concert film. Wenders weaves the artist biographies with a glimpse of modern Cuba remembering its past, capturing a lost culture in music that is suddenly, unexpectedly revived for audiences in Havana and around the world. Wenders makes his presence practically invisible, as if his directorial flourishes or off-screen narration might deflect attention from the artists, who do a fine job of telling their own stories through interviews and music. It's a loving portrait of a master class in Cuban music, with a vital cast of ageing performers whose energy and passion belie their years. --Sean Axmaker
Amazon.com Essential Video
In 1996, composer, producer, and guitar legend Ry Cooder entered Egrem Studios in Havana with the forgotten greats of Cuban music, many of them in their 60s and 70s, some of them long since retired. The resulting album, Buena Vista Social Club, became a Grammy-winning international bestseller. When Cooder returned to Havana in 1998 to record a solo album by 72-year-old vocalist Ibrahim Ferrer, filmmaker Wim Wenders was on hand to document the occasion. Wenders splits the film between portraits of the performers, who tell their stories directly to the camera as they wander the streets and neighborhoods of Havana, and a celebration of the music heard in performance scenes in the studio, in their first concert in Amsterdam, and in their second and final concert at Carnegie Hall. The songs are too often cut short in this fashion, but Buena Vista Social Club is not a concert film. Wenders weaves the artist biographies with a glimpse of modern Cuba remembering its past, capturing a lost culture in music that is suddenly, unexpectedly revived for audiences in Havana and around the world. Wenders makes his presence practically invisible, as if his directorial flourishes or off-screen narration might deflect attention from the artists, who do a fine job of telling their own stories through interviews and music. It's a loving portrait of a master class in Cuban music, with a vital cast of aging performers whose energy and passion belie their years. --Sean Axmaker
Customer Reviews
Quit grousing, it's fun and great music!! Share discographys (2004-07-20)  I was "introduced" to the Latin music by my Brazilian neighbor, but give Ry Cooder his due folks. Most of these marvelous Cuban musicians would still be only memories of your Grandparents had Cooder and Wender (sp)? not put the recordings and DVD together. Documentary or concert tape? who cares? I loved the music and since I've never been to Havana or Cuba, the video section of Ry and his son putting along on their motorcycle thru the city's streets to the recording studio were wonderful background for me.Am I going to quit searching for Cuban / Latin music because I "found" Buena Vista Social Club? Hell no... I'm looking for more!! Does Ry Cooder's steel guitar work blend in with the Cuban sounds? Ahhh... Who cares? How much Gerry Garcia / Jimi Hendrix crap did we have to listen to... to get to the meat of their talent?Give it a rest folks.. Or better yet- share some of the discographys of your favorite Latin players, young and old!!THAT would be really fun!But quit whining
The tapestry of life through their music (2004-03-13)  A previous writer's comment, "The movie needs a story, a thread going all the way through," illustrates a major difference between North American and Hispanic thinking. While those of northern European descent tend to think and talk in a more or less linear fashion, as if following just one thread, Hispanics tend to think and talk as if weaving a tapestry of many threads. This film captures perfectly the tapestry effect in that you are not aware that a story is being told until the final scene at Carnegie Hall, when the impact, and the import, of the entire picture becomes crystal clear. You have to be comfortable with not knowing exactly where you are to handle this kind of exposition. If this is not a story of excellence forgotten and rediscovered, I don't know what it is. These people give me hope; their lives tell so many important stories! If I can create half the beauty in my old age as they do and have done with their music, I'll consider myself successful and fulfilled, indeed.
Musically Solid (2004-01-26) The film captures the live peformance of the wonderful musicians that were featured on the CD. From this perspective it is well worth owning. The ability to see Compay Segundo and Eliades ochoa perform Chan Chan live ,for example, is incredible. The documentary style and the scenes of streetlife in Havana are also very colorful and entertaining, However I must agree with some of the other reviewers that there is something off about Ry Cooder. I respect him for bringing this wonderful music and these artists the recognition they deserve but his attititude on film does seem strange and his guitar playing does not fit with some of the tunes. At one point he is performing with Rueben Gonzalez , the great Cuban pianist, and he sounds so out of place. In fact Gonzalez looks up from the keyboard with a look on his face that seemed to me to be saying."what are you doing?" I guess Cooder might have made the choice to let the music of Cuba speak for itself and just be content to film it but he chose instead to feature himself too frequently for my taste.That aside , this is still a fine documentary and a must for anyone who enjoys latin music.
A Stroke of Genius (2004-01-18) If you have never been to Cuba, this is a mildly amusing documentary about a chapter in the history of carribean music. If, however, you have walked through the neigborhood of Buena Vista on 70th Street in La Habana or watched the sun go down from the Malecón at the mouth of the Rio Almendares this film will make your mouth go dry and your eyes water. Vim Wenders and Ry Cooder, quite by accident discovered a cache of musicians who had played in the forties in a Cabaret called the Buena Vista Social Club that is now long gone. They have common characteristics, they are old, they were forgotten and they were and are incredibly gifted. Some have now died in their eighties and nineties. They were rescued and recorded in the nick of time. The film is apolitical and was shot digitally without apology. The CD from the sound track sold gozillions of copies and raised the export of Cuban music and musicians to be a world treasure. The type of music is called "son" and arose from the Danzon (the big dance) of the early part of the century. Played by three to six musician with uncomplicated instruments, you get to meet each of them individually. Collectively, son is "guajiro" or country boy music. The stars, including Compay Segundo, Eliades Ochoa and the charming Ibrahim Ferrar will become perpetually embedded in your memory. Until this country comes to its senses you will be deprived of the experience of this touching world, but until then you can enjoy it vicariously at the Buena Vista Social Club.
Somewhat Disappointing (2004-01-10)  A fairly enjoyable musical travelogue -- saved mostly by the high quality of the music itself -- but I expected more. Wenders treats everything kind of superficially -- each musician gets to say about a paragraph about his/her life and music on camera. Ibrahim Ferrer, the defacto star of the movie, gets a bit more face time, but he seems like such a fascinating character and I don't really feel that the audience gets to know him. The movie needs a story, a thread going all the way through. We know that Cooder rediscovered some of these guys, and that there used to be this Buena Vista Social Club, but we don't get a good sense of it. What history there is is usually done in voice over, often with music playing at the same time, so it's hard to take in the information. Cooder gets annoying sometimes as well -- his guitar style doesn't always fit in, and there's something irritating and a condescending about the way he relates to the other musicians. Still, worth seeing, especially in the US, where we rarely get a good look at Cuban life.
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