Soul Power (2008)

Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

It's 1974 Kinshasa, Zaire. Promoters Hugh Masekela and Stewart Levine are organizing a companion music festival for the Ali-Foreman fight. It is to be the combination of African American music and musicians from mother Africa. James Brown is the headliner. A few days before the event, the fight is delayed due to Foreman's eye cut. The problem is that the music festival can not be delayed. The show must go on. This documentary starts like a freight train with James Brown and Soul Power. The main problem stems from the fact that it doesn't follow one person. It's a scattered way to tell a narrative. There is no structure. It's more like a series of behind-the-scenes snippets. There are amazing scenes of the stars talking, and some great musical performances. It's a nice series of vignettes that allows the audience to travel back in time to a specific place.

What was so surprising (to me at least) is that this footage existed. The fact that it wasn't put together/released until 2008 is secondary. This is NOT a movie about a concert. It's a documentation of an event process, meaning there's more to it than guitars, drums and singers. It was filmed in 1974 in Zaire (Democratic Republic of Congo). To expect anything different, fit into one-and-a-half hours, is ridiculous. There's enough material to make 6 hours worth of documentaries. Although the movie does eventually give us the names of the major players in credits, it would have been nice to flash those names once the actors/participants first appeared on the screen.

As around 17 million British TV watcher settled down to watch the dross that was The X Factor (I could spend hours explaining why Simon Cowell and Company are ruining British Pop Music!) some of us more enlightened souls escaped to the cover of our local film club to enjoy some truly talented musicians getting on in Zaire (as the country was known in 1974).This wonderful film tells the story of the three day festival given by Afro American/African musicians that accompanied the famous 'Rumble In The Jungle' World Heavyweight Title fight between Ali and Foreman (for the fight itself you must see 'When We Were Kings', outstanding documentary covering the events surrounding the fight). The film has been pieced together from footage taken at the time and gives a insight as to what happened in the run-up to the 3 day festival, as well as presenting the best of the music performed on stage.Thankfully the pre-festival events are kept to a minimum - just enough to give you a clear idea as to the politics involved - and the bulk of the film is occupied by the music - and what great music it is! BB King, The Spinners (the black soul group, not the British folk one!), many African musicians (whoses names I am ashamed to say have escaped me for the time) etc all on the top of their form, then... The Godfather of Soul, Soul Brother Number One, The Hardest Working Man In Showbiz... MR JAMES BROWN! If you are not blown away by what is shown of his performance then you have no soul! Blistering is hardly the word! Watching him perform reminds you of just what a towering talent the world lost a few Christmases ago when he sadly departed this world - God rest you James, and thanks for the music.One other point that makes this film so worthwhile is the incidental scenes on the streets of Kinshasa where local musicians play for the sheer joy of giving the world music. There is one unnamed band on a street corner with amps, mikes the whole shebang just jamming away - amazing! Normally as the end titles role the audience get up and start to leave - but not this time! Only two people left half way during the end titles, the rest stayed until the screen went blank and the curtains came across, applauding all the time! Never have I witnessed that before, a fitting tribute to a film that deserves to be seen again, and again, and again etc! Forget all the dross that programmes like the X Factor inflict on the world, this is music as it should be, with heart and more soul in one note than in every single record that Simon Cowell has, or ever will, produce!

Soul Power is the story of the legendary concert in which Don King promoted a concert full of African American soul artists. There was also a fight between Muhammed Ali and George Foreman. I walked in expecting a soulful vibe and a fun time. I walked in expecting wrong. The film is just stock footage thrown together with no real story or fun behind it. There are very few good things. One thing is that in the first half they somewhat intrigue us with the question: will this concert actually happen? In the second half, they leave that question, and basically show boring stock footage with a couple of good shots thrown in. You can tell the filmmakers aren't really trying to tell us about the concert as much as throwing stock footage together. It's a film that just leaves the audience bored. Also, I wanted less of the stock footage and more of the back story. It doesn't answer the questions I wanted it to. Muhammed Ali has a couple of good interviews, but I wanted to see more of the back story of the fight and how the fight was connected with the concert. It was just a boring movie that's essentially stock footage thrown together. This can only be described as one thing...boring.