ONLY THE STRONG SURVIVE
# stars based on 4 stars: 3 Reviewed by: Harvey Karten Miramax Films Directed by: Chris Hegedus, D.A. Pennebaker Cast: William Bell, Jerry Butler, The Chi-Lites, Isaac Hayes, Sam Moore, Ann Peebles, Wilson Pickett, Sir Mack Rice, Carla Thomas, Rufus Thomas, Mary Wilson Screened at: Preview 9,NYC, 1/23/03
Nobody can say that I don't like music. After all "Amadeus" is my all-time favorite film. I must confess, though, that I'm out of the loop on anything composed since 1890, which is why I looked forward to whatever enlightenment Chris Hegedus and D.A. Pennebaker's doc could afford. Composed of snippets of recent concerts by some of the old time greats of Soul at such locations at the Westbury Music Far, "Only the Strong Survive" is light on archival film (alas) but big on introducing the movie audience to the distinct personalities of the singers who grace the stage while letting us in on what Soul was like before it was all but decimated by newer and grittier forms of music such as disco, rock, acid rock and ultimately hip-hop.
While there was only a passing attempt to define Soul other than having us hear such classics as "The Theme from Shaft," "Only the Strong Survive," and "Walk the Dog" (the highlight of the film in my view, perhaps because that's what I do three times a day), anyone who listens closely to the rhythm, the lyrics and the gyrations of singers and orchestras alike might come up with something. Let's try this: "Soul is a composite of gospel and blues, the term itself coming from styles of music that expressed the growing feeling of black pride primarily in the 1960's." If so, Soul followed on the heels of R&B, or rhythm and blues. As I recall from my own coming of age and as the film brings up early on Soul music began in the South, moving North and West and East on the routes that carried southern black workers to the industrial north. The music fused with urban jazz sounds into R&B and then gained acceptance among white people, at which point it split into rock 'n' roll (for whites) and Soul (for blacks). (How's that for a Mozart fan?)
"Only the Strong Survive" introduces us to producer Roger Friedman whose idea was to bring back a music form that seems to have died out but nonetheless survives among the "strong," i.e. the performers who continue to strut their stuff on radio stations and dime-a-dozen tours. Friedman was able to round up notables like Wilson Pickett, Jerry Butler, Mary Wilson (who was with the Supreme before the break-up), The Chi-Lites, Sam Moore, Rufus Thomas, and Thomas's daughter Carla. Unfortunately many so-called legends had died at an early age such as Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding and most of the Temptations and, sadly, Rufus Thomas, who has major part in this doc, died in December, 2001, just short of this film's screenings at the following months' Sundance Festival and festivals in Toronto, Chicago, Pennsylvania, the Hamptons, and Cannes.
While only a specialized audience will resonate to the chatter of some of the old timers at radio shows, and while only Sam Moore freely describes himself as a man addicted to heroin and cocaine which might have killed him had his wife not strongly intervened, each gives us a distinct vibe based on his or her performance. Wilson Pickett, for example, with shades in place and wisecracking asides, turns out a sharp performance of "In the Midnight Hour" and "Soul Survivor." Moore, eyes opening wide when particularly charged with emotion, renders "Soul Man" to Mary Wilson's "Love Child." While Rufus Thomas's "Walking the Dog" happily gets the full attention of lensing by James Desmond, Nick Doob, Chris Hegedus, Jehane Noujaim, and D.A. Pennebaker, the fireworks go off during a rare joint performance by Rufus Thomas and his daughter Carla with the jazzy "Night Time is the Right Time."
Interestingly the bands are integrated, whites performing briskly on the big sax and horn, seemingly to reject the idea that only blacks can perform this specialized type of music. All in all, Pennebaker and Hegedus appropriately balance talking heads with music (though I'd have preferred less talk and more songs performed to completion) making "Only the Strong Survive" a fitting tribute to folks all but unknown by today's generation of rap artists and their passionate fans.
Not Rated. 95 minutes. Copyright 2003 by Harvey Karten at Harveycritic@cs.com
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