Stop Making Sense (1984)

An innovative concert movie for the rock group The Talking Heads.

Director:

Jonathan Demme

Writers:

Jonathan Demme, Talking Heads

Stars:

Bernie Worrell, Alex Weir, Steven Scales

3 wins.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Bernie Worrell	...	Keyboards
Alex Weir	...	Guitar and Vocals
Steven Scales	...	Percussion (as Steve Scales)
Lynn Mabry	...	Backing Vocals
Ednah Holt	...	Backing Vocals (as Edna Holt)
Tina Weymouth	...	Bass, Percussion and Vocals
Jerry Harrison	...	Guitar, Keyboards and Vocals
Chris Frantz	...	Drums and Vocals
David Byrne	...	Vocals and Guitar

Storyline

David Byrne walks onto the stage and does a solo "Psycho Killer." Jerry Harrison, Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz join him for two more songs. The crew is busy, still setting up. Then, three more musicians and two back-up singers join the band. Everybody sings, plays, harmonizes, dances, and runs. They change instruments and clothes. Bryne appears in the Big Suit. The backdrop is often black, but sometimes it displays words, images, or children's drawings. The band cooks for 18 songs, the lyrics are clear, the house rocks. In this concert film, the Talking Heads hardly talk, don't stop, and always make sense.

---

Plot Keywords:

band | song | musician | suit | concert film | 

---

Taglines:

Why stop making sense? Why a movie? Why a big suit? Where do the odd movements come from? What will the band do next?

---

Genres:

Documentary | Music

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 November 1984 (West Germany)

Filming Locations:

Pantages Theater - 6233 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,200,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$21,051 (USA) (28 May 1999)

Gross:

$148,443 (USA) (3 December 1999)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Talking Heads, Arnold Stiefel Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min 100 min (VHS)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital (1999 re-release) Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

David Byrne's staggering during the latter part of "Psycho Killer" was directly inspired by Fred Astaire in Royal Wedding during the song "I Left My Hat In Haiti".

---

Goofs

At several points throughout the film, the sound and vision do not sync up. This is particularly noticeable during "Found A Job:" early in the song, a cymbal crash is heard, even though Chris Frantz is not seen to hit one. A few bars later, he hits the cymbal, but no sound is heard.

---

Quotes

David Byrne: Thanks! Does anybody have any questions?

---

Connections

Spoofed in True Stories (1986)

---

Soundtracks

"Take Me to the River"
Written by Al Green and Mabon Hodges
Performed by Talking Heads

User Reviews

THE Great Concert Film

All concert films should be as innovative, energetic and just plain fun as Stop Making Sense. With Jonathan Demme as director, the concert has a weird and wonderful theatrical look, with David Byrne arriving onstage at the beginning, armed with an acoustic guitar. Gradually, the other members of the band join him and the stage sets become highly unusual. For visuals, nothing matches the odd behavior of Byrne and quirky but (for the most part) great songs of the Talking Heads better than Demme's approach to filming. The movie has such a terrific build up (at one point Byrne actually runs around the stage repeatedly) that you cannot help but move with it. I can't believe concert films that followed did not even attempt to match this film's innovativeness. A great movie, even if you've never heard of the Talking Heads.