Director: Ron Howard
MPAA Rating: NR
Although the idea of Ron Howard directing a documentary revolving around Jay-Z’s Made in America festival in Philadelphia may sound like an interesting team-up, the result is a fairly by-the-numbers concert movie that tries a bit too hard explaining the American dream through the backstories of some of the most popular working musicians today.
Through concert footage, backstage clips and candid interviews, Ron Howard explores the state of America while showcasing this enormous festival filled with great performances from the likes of Pearl Jam, Skrillex, Run DMC and many more.
In the interviews, Howard delves into the backstory of each of the performers to discover where they came from and what drove them to become the popular artists they are today. While some of these conversations were interesting, most of the musicians repeated the same ethos over and over again – in summary, never give up on your dreams and devote yourself 100 percent to your craft. Some of these stories can be looked at as inspirational, but this sentiment began feeling grating by the film’s conclusion.
The film also briefly follows around a young cook, attempting to raise enough money to buy and fix up a food truck so she can provide for her daughter; an elderly woman who lives next to the concert venue; and a stagehand as he works his ass off prepping each performance. These stories were clearly meant to bring a more grounded, realistic version of the overarching message of the doc, but they were continuously overshadowed by the large amount of concert footage.
The beginning of the film features some excellent slow-motion crowd footage, but other than that, it’s presented in a straightforward manner, letting the music speak for itself rather than the visuals. This works fine as a concert film, but results in the movie feeling more like an ad for Jay-Z’s brand rather than an exposé on popular music in America.
As for the music itself, the film consisted of one performance from most of the acts, with Pearl Jam and, of course, Jay-Z nabbing more screen time. With the variety of performers ranging from rock groups like The Hives to such soul singers as D’Angelo and Jill Scott, there’s something for everyone here.
The Blu-ray contains no special features, which is unfortunate considering there’s probably a large amount of additional footage that never made it to the final product. Having some additional performances or even some more interviews would have been a nice addition, and these days it seems almost criminal to not include any bonus items for at-home viewers.
As a concert documentary, Made in America is an entertaining watch, however, aside from the actual music and some of the backstage stuff with Jay-Z, it feels extraneous and unnecessary. I like Jay-Z. I like his music; I like his politics; and I think he’s the type of hip-hop artist that has the power to be a positive role model on the youth of today. Unfortunately, although this film attempts to convey his message, it sometimes feels disingenuous and somewhat out of place. Still, fans will enjoy watching Jay-Z in a more candid format, where he has the opportunity to just be himself. As for the Blu-ray version, I would recommend picking this up on VOD or waiting for the Netflix release instead.
