A One Mann’s Movies Film Review of “The Greatest Night in Pop” (2024).
New on Netflix is this documentary that really does chart “The Greatest Night in Pop”. We are a fly on the wall at the recording in January 1985 of the USA for Africa charity single “We Are The World”.
Bob the Movie Man Rating:
Plot Summary:
After Bob Geldof has raised a lot of money for the Ethiopian drought victims with his “Band Aid” single, a group of American superstars, led by Harry Belafonte and Lionel Ritchie, gather a group of icons together into one studio for one night to record their own charity single.
Certification:
UK: 12; US: PG-13. (From the BBFC web site: “Infrequent strong language”).
Talent:
Starring: USA for Africa (Lionel Ritchie, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Diana Ross, Billy Joel, Quincy Jones and just about anyone who was anyone in the world of music of the 1980’s!), Harry Belafonte, Dan Ackroyd, Bob Geldof.
Directed by: Bao Nguyen.
Twitter Handle: #TheGreatestNightInPop
Running Time: 1h 36m.
“The Greatest Night In Pop” Film Review:
Positives:
- There is so much to love about this documentary, especially for those who went through the 80’s and appreciated the decade’s music. The anecdotes shared here are superb, including:
- Al Jarreau being so sloshed on wine that he could barely sing his line;
- Waylon Jennings walking out;
- Cyndi Lauper’s noisy beads;
- Bob Dylan’s general discomfort in being there;
- the cracking of Quincy Jones’s legendary cool;
- Diana Ross sobbing at the close because she didn’t want it to end!
- Most of this is done with the original footage of the event mixed with talking heads of some of the participants who are still with us and fill-in footage of LA streets etc. It’s slickly put together by cinematographer turned director Bao Nguyen.
Negatives:
- The ending feels like a bit of a “rah-rah” job for the USA for Africa project… they obviously did a great job, but it’s laid on a bit thick for UK tastes.
Summary Thoughts on “The Greatest Night In Pop”
I doubt this will win many awards, as it is not a challenging subject and the original footage, edited together, does most of the heavy lifting. But this is a terrific documentary that is entertaining from start to finish. Recommended.
Trailer for “The Greatest Night In Pop”:
The trailer is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MD3oU1gowu4 .
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