All Tomorrow's Parties (2009)

If you like partying all weekend, getting off your face on…. fizzy drinks, and listening to some of the coolest indie bands around then chances are this movie was made for you.All Tomorrow's Parties is a collection of fan filmed footage from the festival of the same name, which takes place in East Sussex and Somerset at out of season holiday camps each year.If you don't dig festivals or live music then you could be wasting your time on this but whether you love them or loathe them this is more of an experience than a film. It's loud, sweaty, sexy and enthralling.There's no plot, no characters (unless you count the musicians) and there's no point. It's mostly a matter of sitting back and being sucked into the festival.But because the whole thing is made up of fan footage, as well as some camera-work by the bands themselves, it's very disjointed and jarring in places but, for the most part, it's plain impressive. It's a lot like watching home movies of people you've never met.The editor, Nick Fenton, is a genius as is evidenced in the first 5 minutes in which a thumping beat plays to footage of the holiday camps as they used to be in the 50s and 60s: full of family fun, not festival stoners and their guitars.A lot of funny teenage shenanigans occur as the festival seems to be a gateway through which people grow up and music displays the shaky transition from teenager to adult. It showcases how people who genuinely love music will find a beat anywhere and that it's more than just noise.Bands that are included in this musical mash-up are The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Mars Volta, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, The Gossip and a bizarre little cameo by comedian David Cross. If you don't like or have never heard of these people, I wouldn't worry because there is an eclectic mix and you'll probably find something you'll like.While it is an impressive collage of material, it does lack any kind of cohesiveness and could lead to a few dips in your attention. Also, its use of split screen teeters between visually grating and kinetic magnificence.A good film but probably best enjoyed when you've had some… fizzy drinks.

this film is visceral and kinetic. one of the more potent music films i've seen. warning: this is not a strictly narrative film about the history of the festival - it's a post punk collage of some of the best alt. rock moments from ATPs last 10 years, made from footage shot and contributed by the fans and musicians at the festivals on video cameras, mobile phone, super 8s etc but it comes together in a way that makes it greater than the sum of it's parts. kudos to the way it was made. nick cave/grinderman, battles, akron family, portishead, the octopus project, grizzly bear and lightning bolt and stand out moments, and i'm sure i spotted aphex twin in there but didn't see him credited. patti smith closes the film with a killer performance.

For a film almost entirely composed of amateur footage, sent in by fans, this is certainly one of the best looking, best sounding rock documentaries I've seen for a very long time.This girl Krissie Nicolson summed it up pretty well: "We get performances from the festival goers and artists on film, camcorder, Super 8 and mobile phones. Some of it is hilarious, some of it's inspiring - and all of it is entertaining in some way. I think this film instructional. It should be shown at schools as part of the national curriculum to excite free and independent thinking. After all, this country needs the agitators more now than ever."

I was expecting to see a film of rock footage and quirky asides as you might think a movie on the legendary alternative music festival ATP would yield. What we got is something a whole lot more than that and all the better for it.For a film on rock concerts there was surprisingly little straight full song concert footage. What we got instead was insight into the motivation and vibe of the festival, and how this sits along side general music trends and more importantly what that means in a wider context.ATP is a welcome slight on the rock star myth. Instead we see real people connecting with real emotions and expressing it through real music, and the audience who actually heard that expression and the effect it had on them.There's more music around us than ever, it's on all the time, but how many of us actually listen.That said there is some spectacular live footage and some stunning sound, but more than that Jonathan Caouette has edited the miles of footage into a message, a thought provoking and relevant message, and that is why this film succeeds above the just another rock concert movie option, which would have been quite entertaining in itself.