Rage Against The Machine, Phish, Green Day, Metallica, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam. What do they have in common? They’ve all been together over 20 years. So how does a band stay together so long? Cameron Crowe attempts to answer that question for the band, Pearl Jam, in Pearl Jam Twenty, which opened the 2011 CMJ Music & Film Festival. Formed in Seattle, Washington in 1990, the band developed as part of the “grunge” scene along with bands such as Nirvana and Soundgarden. The film chronicles their 20 year history examining the dynamic of the band using concert footage and interviews with the members. There are very few interviews with anyone outside the band, and so at points the footage is intercut as a sort of off-camera conversation. Each member recounts their memories and others pick up where they leave off.With such an intimate picture of the band and of how long they’ve been performing together, there is no mention at all of their life outside the band except for a short tour of rhythm guitarist, Stone Gossard’s home. There is a slight mention of lead guitarist Mike McCready’s bought with Crohn’s disease, but most of the film is focused on the band as a unit.
It’s evident that the reason they’ve stayed together so long is not only their love of music, but their admiration and respect for one another. Each one of them praises the other and there isn’t a slightest hint of ego. It’s also extremely refreshing to see a rock documentary that doesn’t end with an addiction but rather start out with one. It’s obvious that the death of their friend greatly contributed to their appreciation of life and kept them very down to earth.
At 109 minutes, it’s does drag a bit, but it never really slows down. Fans of the band will really enjoy all the live performances and others who aren’t familiar with their music will be entertained by the charismatic members who truly respect and enjoy one another.
The book and soundtrack are available now, and the film is premiering on PBS today, October 21, 2011, 9pm (ET/PT). Check local listings as pbs.org/americanmasters
Rating: Enjoyable to fans as well as people seeking a good story. 7/10
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