''American Utopia'' is a 2020 American

concert film A concert film or concert movie is a film that showcases a live performance from the perspective of a concert goer, the subject of which is an extended live performance or concert, by either a musician or a Stand-up comedy, stand-up comedian. Ea ...

directed and produced by

Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and author. His work has continually explored race relations, issues within the black community, the role of media in contemporary ...

, from a screenplay by

David Byrne David Byrne (; born May 14, 1952) is an American musician, writer, visual artist, and filmmaker. He was a founding member, principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of the American New wave music, new wave band Talking Heads. Byrne has ...

. The film is a live recording of a

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

performance of the show adapted from the touring show that supported the album of the same name. The film features selections from that album, as well as songs from throughout Byrne's career. Byrne performed alongside eleven musicians, all of whom used wireless or portable equipment. Frequent collaborator

Annie-B Parson Annie-B Parson is an American choreographer, dancer, and director based in Brooklyn, New York. Parson is notable for her work in dance/theater, post-modern dance, and art pop music. Parson is the artistic director of Brooklyn's Big Dance Theater, ...

served as choreographer. It had its world premiere at the

2020 Toronto International Film Festival The 2020 Toronto International Film Festival, the 45th event in the Toronto International Film Festival series, was held from September 10 to 21, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Toronto, the festival took place primarily on an online stream ...

on September 10, 2020. The film received critical acclaim.

Cast

All provide percussion; all except Byrne provide backing vocals. *

– lead vocals, electric and acoustic guitars * Chris Giarmo – dancing, melodica * Tendayi Kuumba – dancing * Karl Mansfield – keyboards, musical director * Angie Swan – electric guitar * Bobby Wooten III – bass *

Mauro Refosco Mauro Refosco (born 16 October 1966), is a Brazilian percussionist. He is best known for his work with singer David Byrne and the American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. He was a member of the experimental supergroup Atoms for Peace – featur ...

– drums, musical director * Tim Keiper – drums * Gustavo Di Dalva – drums * Jacquelene Acevedo – drums * Daniel Freedman – drums * Stephane San Juan – drums

Songs

*"Here" (from ''

American Utopia ''American Utopia'' is the eighth studio album by Scottish-American Rock music, rock musician David Byrne, released on March 9, 2018 through Todo Mundo and Nonesuch Records. The release is his first solo studio album since 2004's ''Grown Backwar ...

'') *"I Know Sometimes a Man Is Wrong" (from ''

Rei Momo ''Rei Momo'' is the debut solo album by David Byrne and second overall studio album (after the 1981 collaborative album '' My Life in the Bush of Ghosts''), released on 3 October 1989. The album reached number 54 on the UK Charts and number 71 o ...

'') *"Don't Worry About the Government" (from '' Talking Heads: 77'') *" Lazy" (from ''

Muzikizum ''Muzikizum'' is the debut studio album by X-Press 2. It was released on Skint Records in 2002. It features vocal contributions from David Byrne, Dieter Meier, and Steve Edwards. It peaked at number 15 on the UK Albums Chart. Critical reception ...

'' by

X-Press 2 X-Press 2 are an English electronic dance music duo. The members are DJ Diesel (Darren House) and DJ Rocky (Darren Rock). Ashley Beedle left to pursue solo projects in 2009. They were DJ Award winners in 2002 and Ivor Novello winners in 2003 ...

) *"

This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody) "This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)" is a song by American rock band Talking Heads. The closing track of their fifth studio album ''Speaking in Tongues'', it was released in November 1983 as the second and final studio single from the album; a ...

" (from ''

Speaking in Tongues Speaking in tongues, also known as glossolalia, is an activity or practice in which people utter words or speech-like sounds, often thought by believers to be languages unknown to the speaker. One definition used by linguists is the fluid voc ...

'') *"

I Zimbra "I Zimbra" is a song by American new wave band Talking Heads, released as the second single from their 1979 album ''Fear of Music''. According to Sytze Steenstra in ''Song and Circumstance: The Work of David Byrne from Talking Heads to the Pres ...

" (from ''

Fear of Music ''Fear of Music'' is the third studio album by the American new wave band Talking Heads, released on August 3, 1979, by Sire Records. It was recorded at locations in New York City during April and May 1979 and was produced by Brian Eno and Talki ...

'') *"Slippery People" (from ''Speaking in Tongues'') *"I Should Watch TV" (from ''

Love This Giant ''Love This Giant'' is a studio album made in collaboration between musicians David Byrne and St. Vincent, released on 4AD and Todo Mundo on September 10, 2012, in the United Kingdom and the following day in the United States. Marking Byrne's ...

'') *"Everybody's Coming to My House" (from ''American Utopia'') *" Once in a Lifetime" (from ''

Remain in Light ''Remain in Light'' is the fourth studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cass ...

'') *"Glass, Concrete & Stone" (from ''

Grown Backwards ''Grown Backwards'' is the seventh studio album by the American musician David Byrne, released on March 16, 2004. Reception In 2010, Byrne wrote in his book '' How Music Works'' it has sold 127,000 physical albums, 8,000 digital albums and ...

'') *" Toe Jam" (from ''

I Think We're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat ''I Think We're Gonna Need a Bigger Boat'' is the debut album of the British electronic act the Brighton Port Authority. It was released on Southern Fried on 6 January 2009 exclusively on amazon.com, with a regular release on 3 February. The ...

'' by The Brighton Port Authority) *" Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On)" (from ''Remain in Light'') *"I Dance Like This" (from ''American Utopia'') *"Bullet" (from ''American Utopia'') *"Every Day Is a Miracle" (from ''American Utopia'') *" Blind" (from ''

Naked Nudity is the state of being in which a human is without clothing. While estimates vary, for the first 90,000 years of pre-history, anatomically modern humans were naked, having lost their body hair, living in hospitable climates, and not ...

'') *"

Burning Down the House "Burning Down the House" is a song by American rock band Talking Heads, released in July 1983 as the first single from their fifth studio album ''Speaking in Tongues''. Inspiration and composition "Burning Down the House" is a new wave, funk ...

" (from ''Speaking in Tongues'') *"

Hell You Talmbout "Hell You Talmbout"The word "talmbout" is a Contraction (grammar), contraction of "talking about". is a 2015 protest song by Janelle Monáe and the members of her Wondaland artist collective, including Deep Cotton, George 2.0, Jidenna, Roman G ...

" (by

Janelle Monáe Janelle Monáe Robinson ( ; born December 1, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper and actress. She has received ten Grammy Award nominations, and is the recipient of a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Children's and Family Emmy Award. ...

) *"One Fine Day" (from ''

Everything That Happens Will Happen Today ''Everything That Happens Will Happen Today'' is the second collaborative studio album by David Byrne and Brian Eno, released on August 18, 2008, by Todo Mundo. Marking Byrne's eighth studio effort overall and Byrne and ...

'') *"

Road to Nowhere "Road to Nowhere" is a song by the American band Talking Heads from their 1985 album '' Little Creatures''. The song was written by David Byrne and released as a single in 1985. It reached on the US '' Billboard'' Album Rock Tracks chart and ...

" (from ''

Little Creatures ''Little Creatures'' is the sixth studio album by American rock band Talking Heads, released June 10, 1985, by Sire Records. The album examines themes of Americana and incorporates elements of country music, with many songs featuring steel gui ...

'') *"Everybody's Coming to My House: Detroit" (end credits, sung by the

Detroit School of Arts The Detroit School of Arts (DSA), originally known as the Detroit High School for the Fine and Performing Arts, is a public, magnet high school located in Midtown Detroit, Michigan.

Vocal Jazz choir)

Production

In June 2020, it was announced

had directed a filmed version of the

performance ''

'' by

, with

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

distributing. Cinematographers

Ellen Kuras Ellen Kuras (born July 10, 1959) is an American cinematographer whose work includes narrative and documentary films, music videos and commercials in both the studio and independent worlds. One of few female members of the American Society of Cin ...

and

Declan Quinn Declan Quinn (born 1957) is an American cinematographer. He is a three-time winner of the Independent Spirit Award for Best Cinematography. Early life Born and raised in Chicago, Illinois, Quinn is one of four children. His mother, Teresa, was a ...

utilized

Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

digital cameras to capture the performance.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the

on September 10, 2020. It screened at the

New York Film Festival The New York Film Festival (NYFF) is a film festival held every fall in New York City, presented by Film at Lincoln Center. Founded in 1963 by Richard Roud and Amos Vogel with the support of Lincoln Center president William Schuman, NYFF i ...

on October 3, 2020, and the

BFI London Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival held in London, England, in collaboration with the British Film Institute. Founded in 1957, the festival runs for two weeks every October. In 2016, the BFI estimated that around 240 fe ...

on October 14, 2020. It was broadcast in the United States and Canada on HBO and made available for streaming through

HBO Max Max (known in other countries as, and soon to be reverted globally to HBO Max) is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. It is a proprietary unit of Warner Bros. Discovery Streaming on behalf of Home Box Of ...

(U.S.) and Crave (Canada) on October 17, 2020.

Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...

distributed the film in all other countries. The film received a

limited theatrical release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few cinemas across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...

in the United States throughout September 2021.

Album

The movie was accompanied by a

soundtrack album A soundtrack album is any album that incorporates music directly recorded from the soundtrack of a particular feature film or television show. The first such album to be commercially released was Walt Disney's ''Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs ( ...

that featured the same songs as the movie, but instead of having "Everybody's Coming to My House: Detroit", the album has a bonus track of a live recording of "The Great Curve" from Talking Head's album

Reception

''American Utopia'' received critical acclaim. It holds approval rating on review aggregator website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

, based on reviews, with an average of . The site's critical consensus reads, "Helmed in elegant and exhilarating style by Spike Lee, ''David Byrne's American Utopia'' is a concert film that doubles as a joyously cathartic celebration." On

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

, the film holds a rating of 92 out of 100, based on 28 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Erik Adams of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...

'' devotes a lengthy review to ''American Utopia'' as "the right movie for 2020", noting how Byrne balances hope in a tumultuous world, writing, "The key to ''American Utopia''s resonance isn’t so much one of joy versus despair as it is connection versus isolation".

Accolades

References

External links

* {{Special Tony Award 2020 films American documentary films American rock music films Concert films Films set in a theatre Documentary films about Broadway theatre Films directed by Spike Lee Participant (company) films HBO Films films Universal Pictures films Special Tony Award recipients 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks films 2020s English-language films 2020s American films English-language documentary films