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18 reviews in total

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7 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
Loved it, loved it, loved it!, 23 July 2004
Author: Nolan Miller (nomi338) from Los Angeles

Not only was I at the colliseum to witness this incredible event from the beginning to the end, but my wife my nephew and I appear briefly on camera. To say that I enjoyed the beautiful expressions that I observed that day is to put it mildly. To see such a large crowd of beautiful, proud and peaceful African Americans celebrating our musical heritage was an event that I will cherish to my grave. I can only give thanks to everyone who participated in making this such a seminal event in my life. I was fortunate enough to be able to tape the movie when it came on cable TV but of course I am anxiously waiting for it to come out on DVD. You know the thing that really impresses me is that this came about as the aftermath of a very violent occurrence and there were, at least to my knowledge, no acts of violence during this event. What a great testament to us. Be proud black folks, be very, very proud.

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7 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
Snapshot of Early 1970's Soul, 18 October 2000
Author: hillari from Chicago, USA

This is not just a concert film; it's a documentary about African-American life in Los Angeles in the early 1970's. The concert is to commemorate the Watts riots of 1965, and some of the positive changes that took place in the area. Although there is a lot of humor to be found in some of the comments that the residents make about changes in their area, it's sad to realize that the lingering problems of racism and unequal opportunities still exist to this day. However, there's a lot of joy and hope expressed throughout the film. This is one of Richard Pryor's earliest appearances on film, and he is pure genius. Ted Lange ("The Love Boat") and Raymond Lewis (Woodrow on "Sanford and Son), are some of the Watts residents who give their thoughts about the political changes. Thespian couple Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee can be glimpsed in the stands during a quick shot.

All of the musical performances are solid. The movie opens with The Dramatics' "What You See Is What You Get" which serves as a commentary on Watts itself. Some of the musical acts perform away from the concert area. The Emotions do a heartfelt rendition of the gospel song, "Peace Be Still", in a local church and blues great Little Milton does a classic, "Walking The Back Streets Crying" while sitting near a railway. The late, great Johnny Taylor sings "Jody Got Your Girl and Gone" to a nightclub audience populated by players and hustlers in full regalia. Back on the concert stage, Rufus Thomas appears in an outrageous outfit and mixes comedy along with his music. The Staple Singers, The Barkays, Carla Thomas, Kim Weston, Albert King, Rance Allen please the audience. Issac Hayes caps the night off when he struts in to the "Theme From Shaft" and The Rev. Jessie Jackson gives him a king's welcome.

I saw this film during the Chicago International Film Festival this year, and afterwards, the director, Mel Stuart, explained that legal entanglements continue to keep this film from being released on video. That's a shame, because this film is an excellent time capsule of a piece of 1970's culture.

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4 out of 4 people found the following review useful:
The best of Richard Pryor in a slice of Watts ghetto life, 16 August 2003

Author: Grover Sales from Belvedere, CA

This rarely seen gem has Richard Pryor running on all twelve cylinders, stashed in a Watts bar, rapping with his buddies, the high point of a fascinating unvarnished view of ghetto life that slid down a black hole. This is one of a kind.

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5 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
Relevant Even Today, 21 September 2004
Author: Brian Washington (Sargebri@att.net) from Los Angeles, California

This is one great film not only because of the classic concert footage, but because of the fact that the cameras went out into the community and showed how life was and, for the most part, still is in the inner city. Of course, I am a little biased due to the fact that I live in Los Angeles. In fact, the non concert footage could stand alone as a separate film due to the fact that they show various aspects of African-American life. Also, it is quite sad to see Richard Pryor in this film. This was before the years of abuse began to take their toll and probably helped contribute to the Multiple Sclerosis, which would contribute to his death years later. However, the concert footage is what pushed this film over the top, especially the footage of Issac Hayes. You pretty much could see why he was inducted some 30 years later into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. This not only a great concert film, but a great commentary Black America.

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5 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
The Black folks Woodstock, 9 April 2002

Author: k. jackson (nuport) from Newark, N.J.

After realizing Richard Pryor was in this ,I have spent about 2 years trying to track down a copy ,as I am collecting and have most of his body of work (audio & video).This picture is very seldom seen and a true picture Of us in the early 70's.The beauty of this film is in the impact of seeing real people in the so called 'hood at that time. It was a simpler time, and we still had alot of soul and pride in being what we were.We were one with the music and able to express our individuality. The civil rights movement had just begun to show some gain .But for most of us,it was about sex ,drugs ,and funky soul music .Seeing the young radical looking Rev. Jesse Jackson was incredible and its a shame we recently lost Rufus Thomas ,Johnny Taylor ,Pop Staples .I think in retrospect there is much truth in this film ....

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3 out of 3 people found the following review useful:
phenomenally soulfull, 25 December 2001
Author: Vladimir J. Goykow from GREENPOINT'S FINEST

Back when being black , meant being proud .Melvin"Sweet Sweetback's Baaaadass song"Van Peebles came along with Wattstax. This was the Woodstock for soulbrothers and soulsisters held in 1972 at the L.A. Coliseum.This was the kind of show that made you wnat to jump out your skin and dance up a storm. Rance Allen's "Lying on the Truth" makes a man wanna go to church. Unfortunatly this movie hasn't made its way out on DVD or even VHS as of yet.The only way we can hear the legendary performances is to get the Wattstax soundtrack on cd.There is actually more than one soundtrack out, Wattstax and Wattstax 2. The first one made the leap to cd..while its latter partner in crime is stuck in vinyldom. I can say I have Wattstax 2 and it makes me thank Gd for a turntable...soulfully decadent.

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2 out of 2 people found the following review useful:
straight from the source- release set for September 04, 3 April 2004
Author: andrew van tassel (avantassel) from Richmond, VA

I heard it straight from the source. I just had the privilege to see this film with Mel Stuart at the James River Film Festival in Richmond VA and he says it's coming to DVD in September 2004 with the original ending of the Isaac Hayes performance. Stuart said that it will also be aired on PBS in September 04 so look for that. This great documentary has life of the black experience as it was in the early 70's even has Richard Pryor giving some insight. Has some other good footage of Albert King, the Staple Singers, Rufus and Carla Thomas, Johnnie Taylor, Little Melvin, the Bar-Kays and Jesse Jackson. Some other interesting facts about the filming of the movie. Stuart specifically hired an all black film crew to capture the feel of this event by interviewing people in the streets and around the festival.

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2 out of 2 people found the following review useful:
The best music documentary of all time, 31 October 2001

Author: Aaron from Chicago, IL

My all time favorite music film, probably because it shows how soul was about so much more than music. Stirring performances (Isaac Hayes, The Emotions, Rance Allen Group) and hilarious running monologue from Richard Pryor (at his peak). Also some provocative social statements from Watts residents in the early '70s who speak out on race and romance. Catch it whenever you can---no VHS or DVD is available.

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
A Soul Shout Heard Around the World!!, 10 August 2007

Author: C. Sean Currie (hypestyle) from detroit, MI

*** This review may contain spoilers ***

Wattstax is a concert film, based on the performance of the same name which was held in the summer of 1972. Held in the Los Angeles Coliseum (then home to the NFL's Rams team), the concert was the climax of what was then an annual week-long festival held in the African-American community of Watts commemorating the rebellion/riots that took place in 1965. All of the music performers involved were from the now-storied Stax label, which gave the American pop landscape such acts as Sam & Dave, Booker T. & the MGs, and the Otis Redding. A diverse selection of performers gives viewers a near-complete glimpse of the black music experience circa 1972: Gospel, blues, R&B, and funk artists all on the same bill. Promoted as "The black Woodstock", the full concert was six hours, here condensed to roughly 90 minutes.

The concert was hosted by the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who speaks his now-legendary "I Am Somebody" sermon. Highlights of the show include the Staple Singers ("Respect Yourself"), The Bar-Kays ("Son of Shaft"), Johnnie Taylor ("Jody's Got Your Girl and Gone") Albert King ("I'll Play the Blues for You"), and Rufus Thomas ("The Funky Chicken"). "Shaft" composer and future "South Park" icon Isaac Hayes got to close the show, and the DVD restores his full performance (Warner Bros. Pictures controlled the copyright to the "Shaft" movie songs and refused clearance for the film, which was originally released through Columbia Pictures; the original movie footage of Hayes was rather brief, which perhaps damaged its box office run).

Interspersed between the concert footage are man-on-the-street interviews with assorted locals, who get to opine without censorship on various issues of the day. A pre-"Love Boat" Ted Lange is among them (his prematurely graying mustache lending unintentional humor to his young-guy rants). Also bookending many segments is Richard Pryor, whose similarly uncensored dialogue make some affecting points about uncomfortable subjects, from slavery to police brutality to unemployment. That he manages to find humor in the brutality of racism speaks to the genius of the late comic.

Wattstax, released in the midst of the "blaxploitation" movie trend, was a then-unheard of snapshot of the state of black America as buffered through the music of its artists. There are many establishing shots of storefronts in black neighborhoods: ramshackle churches abound, as well as other starkly blighted structures. As one resident puts it, "some things have changed for the better… some for the worst… a lot of things have stayed the same.." Whatever the physical costs of the civil rights movement (there is brief footage included of Dr. Martin Luther King's final speech) the emotional wounds were still fresh. "Black is beautiful" was the catchphrase of the day, and Afrocentric styles of hair and fashion were at a pre-disco peak (however the flamboyant 'players' who come to see a nightclub show anticipate the "me decade" excess that was to come). Based on footage shown, the assembly team who put together the stage in the middle of the field is mostly white; however, according to commentator Rob Bowman, Stax boss Al Bell insisted that the private security be black as well as any LAPD involved.

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1 out of 1 people found the following review useful:
Good Times!, 9 March 2005

Author: honeybearrecords from United States

WATTSTAX (dir. by Mel Stuart) Late one night when I was a kid, I was watching TV by myself like I did almost every weekend in the wee hours (I still can't sleep). I came across "Wattstax" one night and it blew me away. I had never heard of the Watts Riots. I certainly had never heard of the Wattstax concert. It was a totally eye-opening experience.

Now over 30 years later, "Wattstax" is finally out on DVD and it's beautiful. It's probably the best music documentary ever made. Seven years after the riots in Watts, a concert was thrown at the LA Coliseum where 100,000 people came out to remember the event. The film covers the concert with amazing sound quality and some of the only live footage I've ever seen by amazing groups like the Staples, the Emotions, the totally amazing Bar-Kays… You also get the criminally underrated Carla Thomas with one of the greatest voices of all time coming through crystal clear in this new digital release.

Along with the music you get the classic between song banter with Rufus Thomas and the audience, you get Richard Pryor at his peak, you get Melvin Van Peebles doing his thing and you get Jesse Jackson hosting. Most fascinating to me, however, are the many interviews with just regular folks in Watts. Completely engrossing, the comments are sad, funny and let you emotionally know what the concert was about.

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