Search - Duke Ellington: A Concert of Sacred Music/Love You Madly on DVD

Slightly hollow, yet haunting

jive rhapsodist | NYC, NY United States | 03/15/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Duke was 66 when this film was shot. And we're all creeping there, and we all hope we can wear it as well as he did. But still, so much of the time is given up to rehashes and "In The Beginning God" which is a piece that, while not without interest, is not as strong as its surface would lead you to believe. I'm glad Carney and Procope get screen time and are heard speaking. I could of course wish for more of that, given the importance of the band to Ellington's creations. But it's great that there is some. San Francisco looks great, and I really like the grainy Black and White photography. Louis Bellson's playing is odd - he sometimes sounds like he's on a particularly inspired club date. Magic moments, there are few...Ad Lib On Nippon is heard pretty often in the background, but for my ears it would have galvanized the film to have eventually arrived at a full performance of this, one of Ellington's greatest later works. If you're an Ellington person, this is an essential purchase, but the whole thing left me feeling vaguely sad."