di Pier Guagnetti
.
Un’ombra: scarpe bianche e pantaloni grigio chiaro, passi lenti che si muovono, un saluto al pubblico che rumoreggia. Dice che ha un nastro da far ascoltare a tutti, appoggia per terra un registratore a cassette portatile e schiaccia il pulsante play.
Parte la musica, il piede destro tiene il ritmo, l’inquadratura si stacca dai piedi e sale in alto, ecco la chitarra acustica, poi il volto di David Byrne stralunato. Comincia così Stop Making Sense, il più bello dei film-concerto.
David Byrne
Il film riprende il meglio di tre concerti del dicembre 1983 ad Hollywood dei Talking Heads, la pellicola usata utilizza una nuova tecnologia digital-audio per il sonoro, e avrà un grandissimo impatto. La rivista Rolling Stone lo definirà “Il più bel film-concerto di sempre” e dal 2021 il film è conservato National Film Registr della Biblioteca del Congresso degli Stati Uniti d’America in quanto «film culturalmente, storicamente ed esteticamente significativo».
La prima canzone è Psycho Killer e si capisce che sarà un gran concerto. David è solo sul palco e la drum-machine spara colpi di arma da fuoco.
Psycho Killer
I can’t seem to face up to the facts
I’m tense and nervous and I can’t relax
I can’t sleep ’cause my bed’s on fire
Don’t touch me, I’m a real live wire
Psycho Killer
Qu’est-ce que c’est?
Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better
Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh-oh-oh
Psycho Killer
Qu’est-ce que c’est?
Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better
Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh, oh, oh, oh
Ay-ya-ya-ya-ya-ya, ooh
You start a conversation, you can’t even finish it
You’re talking a lot, but you’re not saying anything
When I have nothing to say, my lips are sealed
Say something once, why say it again?
Psycho Killer
Qu’est-ce que c’est?
Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better
Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh-oh-oh
Psycho Killer
Qu’est-ce que c’est?
Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better
Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh, oh, oh, oh
Ay-ya-ya-ya-ya-ya
Ce que j’ai fait, ce soir-là
Ce qu’elle a dit, ce soir-là
Réalisant mon espoir
Je me lance vers la gloire, okay
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
We are vain and we are blind
I hate people when they’re not polite
Psycho Killer
Qu’est-ce que c’est?
Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better
Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh-oh-oh
Psycho Killer
Qu’est-ce que c’est?
Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better
Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh, oh, oh, oh
Ai-ya-ya-ya-ya-ya, ooh
Ad ogni nuova canzone si aggiunge sul palco un componente alla volta della band.
In ordine Tina Weymouth al basso, Lynn Mabry alle armonie vocali dal backstage, Chris Frantz alla batteria, Jerry Harrison alle tastiere più altri musicisti.
Meraviglioso è il brano Once in a Lifetime con Byrne che cattura la scena con la voce e la recitazione.
Once in a Lifetime
And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack
And you may find yourself in another part of the world
And you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile
And you may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful wife
And you may ask yourself, “Well, how did I get here?”
Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by, water flowing underground
Into the blue again, after the money’s gone
Once in a lifetime, water flowing underground
And you may ask yourself, “How do I work this?”
And you may ask yourself, “Where is that large automobile?”
And you may tell yourself, “This is not my beautiful house”
And you may tell yourself, “This is not my beautiful wife”
Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by, water flowing underground
Into the blue again, after the money’s gone
Once in a lifetime, water flowing underground
Same as it ever was, same as it ever was
Same as it ever was, same as it ever was
Same as it ever was, same as it ever was
Same as it ever was, same as it ever was
Water dissolving and water removing
There is water at the bottom of the ocean
Under the water, carry the water
Remove the water from the bottom of the ocean
Water dissolving and water removing
Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by, water flowing underground
Into the blue again, into the silent water
Under the rocks and stones, there is water underground
Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down
Leting the days go by, water flowing underground
Into the blue again, after the money’s gone
Once in a lifetime, water flowing underground
You may ask yourself, “What is that beautiful house?”
You may ask yourself, “Where does that highway go to?”
And you may ask yourself, “Am I right, am I wrong?”
And you may say to yourself, “My God, what have I done?”
Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by, water flowing underground
Into the blue again, into the silent water
Under the rocks and stones, there is water underground
Letting the days go by, let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by, water flowing underground
Into the blue again, after the money’s gone
Once in a lifetime, water flowing underground
Same as it ever was, same as it ever was
Same as it ever was, look where my hand was
Time isn’t holding up, time isn’t after us
Same as it ever was, same as it ever was
Same as it ever was, same as it ever was
Same as it ever was, same as it ever was (I couldn’t get no rest)
Same as it ever was, hey let’s all twist our thumbs
Here comes the twister
Letting the days go by (same as it ever was, same as it ever was)
Letting the days go by (same as it ever was, same as it ever was)
Once in a lifetime, let the water hold me down
Letting the days go by, water flowing underground
Altra perla del film è Burning Down The House.
Ah, watch out
You might get what you’re after
Cool babies
Strange but not a stranger
I’m an ordinary guy
Burning down the house
Hold tight
Wait ’til the party’s over
Hold tight
We’re in for nasty weather
There has got to be a way
Burning down the house
Here’s your ticket, pack your bags
Time for jumpin’ overboard
Transportation is here
Close enough but not too far
Maybe you know where you are
Fightin’ fire with fire
Ah, all wet
Hey, you might need a raincoat
Shakedown
Dreams walking in broad daylight
365 degrees
Burning down the house
Ah, it was once upon a place
Sometimes I listen to myself
Gonna come in first place
People on their way to work
And, baby what do you expect?
Gonna burst into flames, ah
Burning down the house
My house
Is out of the ordinary
That’s right
Don’t wannna hurt nobody
Some things sure can sweep me off my feet
Burning down the house
No visible means of support
And you have not seen nothin’ yet
Everything’s stuck together
And I don’t know what you expect
Staring into the TV set
Fightin’ fire with fire, ah
David Byrne è ovviamente l’attore principale del film e del concerto. Stralunato, mutante, schizofrenico, smarrito, senza identità, canta e recita in perfetta sintonia tra la musica e l’interpretazione. Il suo abito troppo largo, i suoi tic, i suoi gesti nervosi, la sua postura sono la manifestazione di una realtà contraddittoria ed alienante della società del tempo (e non solo).
I Talking Heads si formano nella New York degli anni settanta, subendo l’originalità artistica di quegli anni e restano sostanzialmente invariati fino allo scioglimento del gruppo. All’epoca del film sono al meglio della loro potenza musicale; Psycho Killer, Burning Down The House e Once in a Lifetime sono brani potenti che influenzeranno la musica che verrà. Dal vivo hanno una straordinaria carica emotiva e in questo film l’amalgama raffinata con gli strumentisti e cantanti che si esibiscono sul palco dà un’ulteriore grazia all’evento.
Per non influenzare troppo lo spettatore del film, le inquadrature del pubblico sono minime e poco udibili sono anche gli applausi; gli interventi degli addetti sul palco per modificare le scarne scene non vengono nascoste, le luci usate sono scarse e semplici. Il regista Jonathan Demme utilizza questi accorgimenti per dare il senso di un vero concerto dal vivo anche a chi sta guardando il film. In sala cinema, quando l’ho visto, ero anch’io al concerto di Hollywood.
Attenzione!
Sono passati 40 anni da quel film-concerto e tra pochi giorni ritornerà nelle sale in versione restaurata in 4K. Un’occasione per chi lo ha già visto di rivederlo, e un altrettanto ottimo motivo per chi non lo ha mai visto di poterlo gustare in anteprima.
Stop Making Sense… ancora.
