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Movies / On DVD / It Might Get Loud
It Might Get Loud

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It Might Get Loud (2009)

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Reviews Counted:84

Fresh:65

Rotten:19

Average Rating:7/10

Consensus: An affectionate tribute to rock's most distinctive instrument, It Might Get Loud is insightful and musically satisfying.

Runtime: 1 hr 37 mins

Genre: Musical & Performing Arts

Synopsis: Who hasn't wanted to be a rock star, join a band or play electric guitar? Music resonates, moves and inspires us. Strummed through the fingers of The Edge, Jimmy Page and Jack White, somehow it... Who hasn't wanted to be a rock star, join a band or play electric guitar? Music resonates, moves and inspires us. Strummed through the fingers of The Edge, Jimmy Page and Jack White, somehow it does more. Such is the premise of It Might Get Loud, a new documentary conceived by producer Thomas Tull.

It Might Get Loud isn't like any other rock'n roll documentary. Filmed through the eyes of three virtuosos from three different generations, audiences get up close and personal, discovering how a furniture upholsterer from Detroit, a studio musician and painter from London and a seventeen-year-old Dublin schoolboy, each used the electric guitar to develop their unique sound and rise to the pantheon of superstar. Rare discussions are provoked as we travel with Jimmy Page, The Edge and Jack White to influential locations of their pasts. Born from the experience is intimate access to the creative genesis of each legend, such as Link Wray's "Rumble’s" searing impression upon Jimmy Page, who surprises audiences with an impromptu air guitar performance. But that's only the beginning.

While each guitarist describes his own musical rebellion, a rock'n roll summit is being arranged. Set on an empty soundstage, the musicians come together, crank up the amps and play. They also share their influences, swap stories, and teach each other songs. During the summit Page’s double-neck guitar, The Edge’s array of effects pedals and White’s new mic, custom built into his guitar, go live. The musical journey is joined by visual grandeur too. We see the stone halls of Headley Grange where "Stairway to Heaven" was composed, visit a haunting Tennessee farmhouse where Jack White writes a song on-camera, and eavesdrop inside the dimly lit Dublin studio where The Edge lays down initial guitar tracks for U2’s forthcoming single. The images, like the stories, will linger in the mind long after the reverb fades.

It Might Get Loud might not affect how you play guitar, but it will change how you listen. The film is directed and produced by An Inconvenient Truth's Davis Guggenheim, and produced by Thomas Tull, Lesley Chilcott and Peter Afterman. Page --© Official Site [More]

Starring: Jimmy Page, Edge, Jack White

Starring: Jimmy Page, Edge, Jack White

Director: Davis Guggenheim

Director: Davis Guggenheim
Producer: Thomas Tull, Lesley Chilcott, Peter Afterman, Davis Guggenheim
Studio: Sony Pictures Classics

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Reviews for It Might Get Loud

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 >> >|
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A rock-doc that celebrates the instrument without overly fretting (as it were) about the hardware.

Full Review Source: Screen International | comment Comment
02/12/09
Jonathan Romney
Jonathan Romney
Screen International

Yes, this is the sort of stuff that makes rock fans absolutely geek out. But Guggenheim's relaxed approach does allow us to get past the guitar-god mystique and show us three fellow tradesmen in love with their craft.

Full Review Source: Capital Times (Madison, WI) | comment Comment
11/13/09
Rob Thomas
Rob Thomas
Capital Times (Madison, WI)

...a sweet little ride, a little glimpse into the spooky stuff inside.

Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
11/07/09
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

For once a film's tagline strikes the right note. ''It might not affect the way you play guitar, but it will change how you listen.''

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
10/29/09
Sandra Hall
Sandra Hall
Sydney Morning Herald

By delving into their backgrounds and character quirks, Guggenheim aims the film beyond the interests of purists, academics, fans and musicians to provide an adventure film exploring the heart of creativity.

Full Review Source: The Age (Australia) | comment Comment
10/28/09
Jim Schembri
Jim Schembri
The Age (Australia)

A must-see for axe players, the movie is not terribly concerned with history. Still, its design is smarter than you realise.

Full Review Source: Time Out Sydney | comment Comment
10/28/09
Time Out Sydney

It cannot be said that any member of this trio is the most gifted conversationalist known to man. In fact, once pleasantries are out of the way, they barely have anything of note to say to one another.

Full Review Source: Herald Sun (Australia) | comment Comment
10/28/09
Leigh Paatsch
Leigh Paatsch
Herald Sun (Australia)

A God-like experience for the rock music fan, this documentary contains both amazing music and insight.

Full Review Source: FILMINK (Australia) | comment Comment
10/27/09
Erin Free
Erin Free
FILMINK (Australia)

The real gold lies in the separate, personal journeys of Messrs Edge, Page and White, explored in their own vastly different locales.

comment Comment
10/25/09
Ed Gibbs
Ed Gibbs
Empire Magazine Australasia

It might not snag Davis Guggenheim another Oscar, but his It Might Get Loud proves that Jimmy Page, The Edge and Jack White make for livelier viewing than Al Gore.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
10/25/09
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Music lovers will find a lot to like in It Might Get Loud, and musicians will positively love it.

Full Review Source: Times-Picayune | comment Comment
10/23/09
Mike Scott
Mike Scott
Times-Picayune

...(W)e except a sonic summit of Olympian proportions. What we get instead are three slight biographies followed by sequences that merely suggest what such a coming together could actually achieve.

Full Review Source: PopMatters | comment Comment
10/10/09
Bill Gibron
Bill Gibron
PopMatters

A celebration of philosophical and artistic conflict in which passion leads to inspiration instead of prejudice or judgment, and principles are ingrained.

Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment Comment
10/08/09
Graham Killeen
Graham Killeen
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

A sense of sweeping admiration overpowers the film's audience and turns us all into silly, unapologetic, screaming fans.

Full Review Source: ReelTalk Movie Reviews | comment Comment
10/04/09
Frank Wilkins
Frank Wilkins
ReelTalk Movie Reviews

Listening to rock gods speak about their music isn't nearly as enjoyable as listening to them play it.

Full Review Source: Charlotte Weekly | comment Comment
10/02/09
Sean O'Connell
Sean O'Connell
Charlotte Weekly

Watch the little admiring smiles that creep onto the faces of The Edge and White as Page turns his Les Paul to 11 and starts blasting out the riff from "Whole Lotta Love." They're big rock stars, but all of a sudden they're 14 again.

Full Review Source: Florida Times-Union | comment Comment
10/01/09
Matt Soergel
Matt Soergel
Florida Times-Union

Extremely relaxed and unfailingly entertaining...

Full Review Source: Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN) | comment Comment
09/28/09
John Beifuss
John Beifuss
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)

Dare you not to smile.

Full Review Source: Kansas City Star | comment Comment
09/25/09
Robert W. Butler
Robert W. Butler
Kansas City Star

Required viewing for guitar enthusiasts, and a pleasant diversion for everyone else.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
09/25/09
Liz Braun
Liz Braun
Jam! Movies

Guitar heroes, real or imaginary, will think they’ve died and gone to heaven.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
09/25/09
J. R. Jones
J. R. Jones
Chicago Reader
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
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Latest News for It Might Get Loud

August 20, 2009: Jimi Hendrix Biopic in the Works Opens in new window
Producer Thomas Tull ("It Might Get Loud") has announced plans for a Jimi Hendrix biopic. Can he succeed where so many others have failed? More...

August 13, 2009: Critics Consensus: District 9 is Certified Fresh
This week at the movies, we've got an alien nation (District 9, starring Jason Cope and Sharlto Copley); a high school musical (Bandslam, starring Gaelan Connell and Vanessa... More...

June 14, 2009: Trailer & Poster review Opens in new window
More...

June 04, 2009: Sydney Film Festival: The Year of the Dog?
With barely a rain-soaked whimper, this year's Sydney Film Festival -- drastically slashed in size and scope for 2009 -- kicked off Wednesday night, June 4. The opening night... More...

See All

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