The 50th Anniversary of Woodstock Music Festival: The Woodstock Diaries (Part 1) is a documentary that takes viewers back to the iconic music festival that took place from August 15-18, 1969. The film features never before seen footage and exclusive interviews with the performers, organizers, and attendees of the festival. The documentary is split into two parts, with the first part covering the events leading up to the festival, the preparations, and the opening day.
The film begins with a brief history of the era, highlighting the social and political changes that had taken place in the United States. The Baby Boomer generation was coming of age, and they were looking for a new way of living. The Vietnam War was in full swing, and many people were disillusioned with the government and the military. Drugs, music, and free love were the symbols of the counterculture that was emerging.
The documentary then moves to the planning phase of the festival. The organizers, Michael Lang, Joel Rosenman, John Roberts, and Artie Kornfeld, were inexperienced in staging such a large event, but they were passionate about creating a new kind of festival where people could come together to celebrate music and peace. They scouted several locations before settling on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, which was about 60 miles from Woodstock.
The filmmakers then introduce the performers who were booked to play at the festival. Some of the biggest names in music, like Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, The Who, and Santana, had agreed to play for a small fee, and others were paid nothing at all. The documentary then describes how the festival was intended to be a free event, but the organizers faced several problems, including the local authorities who were not happy about thousands of hippies descending on their town.
The day before the festival was due to start, heavy rains came, and the farmers' fields turned into a sea of mud. However, the filmmakers show how this only brought the festival attendees closer together, as they helped each other out, shared food and shelter, and bonded over their love of music.
The first day of the festival opens with a performance by Richie Havens, who's soulful voice and acoustic guitar set the tone for the entire weekend. The filmmakers show how, as the day went on, more and more people arrived, and the festival began to take shape. The documentary then highlights the performances of some of the most memorable artists of the festival, such as Joan Baez, The Grateful Dead, and Creedence Clearwater Revival. Each of the performances is shown in full, giving viewers a sense of what it was like to be at the festival.
Overall, The 50th Anniversary of Woodstock Music Festival: The Woodstock Diaries (Part 1) is an excellent documentary for anyone who is interested in the history of music and the counterculture movement of the 1960s. The film captures the spirit of the festival and the people who attended it, and it shows how music can bring people together in times of great social change. The second part of the documentary covers the final two days of the festival, and it promises to be just as entertaining and insightful as the first.
50th Anniversary of Woodstock Music Festival : The Woodstock Diaries is a 2018 music movie with a runtime of 57 minutes.
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