Gimme Shelter (1970)

Directors:

Albert Maysles
David Maysles

Release Date:

6 December 1970 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary | Music

Tagline:

The music that thrilled the world ... and the killing that stunned it!

Plot:

A harrowing documentary of the Stones' 1969 tour, with much of the focus on the tragic concert at Altamont.

Plot Keywords:

Rockumentary | Winter | Knife | Wild | Concert Footage

Cast

Mick Jagger	...	Himself (as The Rolling Stones)
Charlie Watts	...	Himself (as The Rolling Stones)
Keith Richards	...	Himself (as The Rolling Stones)
Mick Taylor	...	Himself (as The Rolling Stones)
Bill Wyman	...	Himself (as The Rolling Stones)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Marty Balin	...	Himself (as Jefferson Airplane)
Sonny Barger	...	Himself
Melvin Belli	...	Himself
Dick Carter	...	Himself
Jack Casady	...	Himself (as Jefferson Airplane)
Mike Clarke	...	Himself (as The Flying Burrito Brothers)
Sam Cutler	...	Himself
Spencer Dryden	...	Himself As Jefferson Airplane
Jerry Garcia	...	Himself (as The Grateful Dead)
Chris Hillman	...	Himself (as The Flying Burrito Brothers)
Meredith Hunter	...	Himself (black youth stabbed by Hell's Angel)
John Jaymes	...	Himself
Paul Kantner	...	Himself (as Jefferson Airplane)
Jorma Kaukonen	...	Himself (as Jefferson Airplane)
Pete Kleinow	...	Himself (as The Flying Burrito Brothers)
Michael Lang	...	Himself (concert organizer)
Bernie Leadon	...	Himself (as The Flying Burrito Brothers)
Phil Lesh	...	Himself (as The Grateful Dead)
Gram Parsons	...	Himself (as The Flying Burrito Brothers)
Alan Passaro	...	Himself (Hell's Angel who stabs Meredith Hunter)
Ronald Schneider	...	Himself
Rock Scully	...	Himself
Michael Shrieve	...	Himself (as Santana band member)
Grace Slick	...	Herself (as Jefferson Airplane)
Frank Terry	...	As Himself on KFRC
Ike Turner	...	Himself
Tina Turner	...	Herself
Bob Weir	...	Himself (as The Grateful Dead)

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:R (Manitoba/Nova Scotia) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Canada:14A (Alberta) (2002) | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-8 | Sweden:15 | USA:PG | USA:R (original cut)

Filming Locations:

Altamont Speedway - 17001 Midway Road, Tracy, California, USA

Company:

Maysles Films

Trivia:

After viewing footage of the stabbing of Meredith Hunter police identified Alan Passaro, a local Hell's Angel, as the man who did the stabbing, arrested him and charged him with murder. At his trial, however, closer examination of the footage showed that Hunter had pulled a gun before Passaro pulled his knife. Passaro was acquitted on grounds of self-defense.

Quotes:

Mick Jagger: Who's fighting and what for?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Tart (2001)

Soundtrack:

(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction

8/10

There's little intellectual stimulation here, it's not some grand statement on the '60s or rock music or concerts, but it's interesting nonetheless as a depiction of an incident which happened to be caught on film -- and put-together in a clever way by the Maysles, as the Stones, specifically Mick, watch the film in the editing room. If the film is mainly concerned with capturing moments, Mick doesn't give much in the way of dialogue -- he's limited to pretty much begging the crowd, "Come on!" when they get too rowdy -- but watching him, mugging for the audience, looking kinda stupid, and then watching the film of the concert death, he's like a kid. (The same kind of stunned reaction is apparent in the beginning, as he listens to a member of the Hell's Angels on the phone, where he blinks and twitches his head every time he's referred to as an "idiot" or something else.)

The first half of the movie is the best detailing of the period -- naked women flapping their breasts, boys fawning for Mick in the front row. And you get the best sense of their music in the first half, too -- or, it's easier to enjoy it, having "Wild Horses" play serenely, whereas when "Sympathy for the Devil" is played at the Altamont concert, you almost wince. Mick is often kind of disgusting to watch, a smiling naif making jokes about his trousers possibly falling down. The Stones were never really a rebellious band (a la The Who), and here Mick is relatively un-sexy, at least from today's viewpoint (and especially compared to Tina Turner, who performs in the film, who's like an eruption of sexual intensity -- she's absolutely stunning). You get a bit of nostalgia when "Love in Vain" is played, with some slow-mo montage, but it's not really a nostalgic piece; most people tend to view it as the end of the '60s or something like that. Watching the Stones onstage, it's apparent that they had little to do with it. Like Jerry Garcia, who appears at one point in some kind of moo moo, they're kind of clueless as to what's going on around them. 8/10