Woodstock

Because three hours of Woodstock 1969 just wasn't enough (seriously), Warner Brothers released director Michael Wadleigh's original cut of the three-day concert, which was edited to just more than four hours from 120 miles of film in 1997. \nEverything from the initial organization of the festival to the cleanup afterwards is documented by Wadleigh's crew. It's all edited together seamlessly by Thelma Schoonmaker, who received Oscar recognition for her work. The frequent use of Cinemascope-style wide-screen to present dual images at once was, at the time, groundbreaking. \nMore than any other concert film, with the possible exception of D.A. Pennebaker's "Monterey Pop," "Woodstock" is fascinating more because of the importance and scope of the event than for the impact of the music, but the music here is worth seeing. \nRichie Havens kicks off the show with a performance of "Handsome Johnny" that's scorching in more ways than one, and The Who tear the stage apart with a medley from "Tommy." Joe Cocker's acid-and-beer-fueled take on "With a Little Help from My Friends" is still as galvanizing as ever, and Jimi Hendrix's iconic rendition of "The Star Spangled Banner," which closed the weekend, is enough to make rock 'n' roll fans from any generation shed a tear. \nThe supporting cast of "Woodstock," a.k.a., the nearly half-a-million attendees, nearly steal the show on many occasions. A couple of kids in a car on their way to the show almost crystallize the entire hippie ethos, and let's not forget the valiant Port-O-San man, whose sanitary efforts throughout the festival were invaluable. \nThree days is a short enough time to present the spirit of the late 1960s and the pervasive sense of wanting to change the world through music, let alone four hours, but Wadleigh manages to do justice to that spirit. A 4-disc CD box set from Atlantic Records is also available, boasting tons of performances not seen in Wadleigh's film.