Davis Guggenheim leaves the brain battering Powerpoint presentation of a documentary that was The Inconvenient Truth in the dust to make a simple film about three guitarists getting together to discuss the instrument they love.
I’m sure the thought of Jimmy Page, The Edge and Jack White sitting in a room together would have even the most modest player salivating on their pick guard, but does the film have anything to offer the casual fan or does it scream some kind of vanity (read: fret wanking) project?
Although the three of them meeting for the first time (or so it feels like) in a back lot, set up with all of their gear, to have a bit of a no pressure chat (and who knows, perhaps, maybe, um… I don’t know, if we’re lucky… a jam?) is a terribly forced situation to base a documentary on, thankfully, it seems like less than a quarter of the film is really spent there and the scenes which are picked out for inclusion nail the sentiment of the film completely.
Instead Guggenhiem smartly treats it more like a loose situation to build a small history of each player upon and skillfully highlights a story of one of the most revered instrument in rock and roll as much as he does to illustrate its unique qualities in the hands of these three very different players.
The White Stripes/Raconteurs/Dead Weather guitarist favoring reel to reel recording, old condenser microphones and little effect work, Zep’s Page with his trusty Les Paul and blues and skiffle roots and the complex layering of The Edge’s delay/reverb stadium sounds are picked (no pun intended) apart by Guggenheim. We discover sweet little stories of first guitars, bands, performances , favorite songs and various other opinions on why it is that the three figure heads of rock keep going back to their six string mistresses.
The opening shots in which Jack White makes a one string guitar out of an old piece of wood, some nails, a coke bottle and pick up is a beautiful illustration of his simple approach to music. “Who say’s you need to buy a guitar?” he quips as he stumbles through a cow field in a bow tie and bowler hat, still somehow managing to look like the coolest man on earth. Edge heads back to Ireland and plays around endlessly with a thousand foot pedals looking for a perfect sound that only he can hear, looks back at band practice with Bono and plays us old cassette demos of Where the Streets Have No Name. Page’s history is a little more filled out going back to his session musician days before The Yardbirds and Led Zepelin and taking us to the house where they recorded those drums on When the Levee Breaks.
The film is full of gold for fans of the bands and, even for those who aren’t, it’s interesting to hear where some of the music which has influenced them came from and why it still moves them. Watching Jimmy Page’s face as he drops the needle on and air guitars along to Link Wray’s Rumble or White putting on Son House for probably the 10,000th time is like watching a small child finding a bag of sherbet in his pocket.
Although it never really gets all the way up to eleven and the ending (a hokey rendition of The Band’s The Weight) is a little too limp for these three juggernauts, It Might Get Loud is still a worthy film about one of life’s remaining pleasures and people who are passionate, nay, obsessive about what they do for a living and through that, make you realise that you probably should be too…
Otherwise what’s the point?
Josh Jones
2 months ago
I loved this movie!
A favourite moment would have to be listening to The Edge talk about still leaving the studio some days feeling dejected and doubtful of his songwriting ability after endless hours of trying hard but achieving nothing of note (despite his 13 or so albums and countless Top 10 hits). It makes me feel better about all the days that end in a similarly frustrated fashion for me in my artistic pursuits.
Any musician, artist, music lover or general rock-wannabe will enjoy this movie. And it’s a must-see for those with an interest in Jimmy, Jack and The Edge and their respective bands.