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Andy Bockelman

Andy Bockelman's movie reviews appear in the Craig Daily Press and Saturday Morning Press.

The '60s music culture was a wonderful time for many Americans, though those who enjoyed the scene the most probably don't remember a thing.

Luckily for them, they have a film like "Taking Woodstock" to jog the memory.

In summer 1969, the times they were a-changin' across the nation. But the residents of the tiny town of White Lake, N.Y., are fine with their community the way it is, in spite of the efforts of native artist Elliot Tiber (Demetri Martin) to shake things up a little.

Working in dual roles as the youngest-ever president of the local Chamber of Commerce and the marketing whiz of the failing Catskills resort owned by his parents (Imelda Staunton, Henry Goodman), Elliot's efforts don't even come close to impressing the townspeople.

However, things are about to change - learning of a music promoter's (Jonathan Groff) need of a new venue for an upcoming concert, he arranges for a nearby dairy owner (Eugene Levy) to put up the land for Woodstock: 3 Days of Peace & Music.

But the local populace isn't feeling so peaceful, fearing an invasion of hippies, burnouts and other undesirables.

Stand-up "nerd comic" Martin has his breakout role as Elliot, by far one of the movie's more normal characters, though it's not hard to beat a shell shocked Vietnam vet (Emile Hirsch), a transvestite security officer (Liev Schreiber) or the leader (Dan Fogler) of an expressionist theater troupe that lives in a barn and embraces a clothing-optional lifestyle.

But even as the perpetual straight man to everyone, Elliot has his own issues in his sexuality and his difficult relationship with his folks. No surprise, with the way Staunton portrays his mother as a hard-headed, penny-pinching Russian emigre. Goodman is equally capable, but more subdued, as her long-suffering husband, whose solution to cleaning a swimming pool is to dump bleach in it indiscriminately.

Groff's bit as Woodstock organizer Michael Lang is a steady mainstay in a sea of tumult, as he stays cooler and more confident than anybody despite a non-stop procession of setbacks, especially once the festival is mistakenly announced to be free.

Not to mention the problems presented by the rainy weather.

There's no shortage of folk rock, mud or long, tracking camera shots in Ang Lee's tribute to the flower child generation.

The filmmaker's ability to keep control of such a widespread, inherently chaotic setting is impressive, but the real triumph is in his approach to the subject. A director with a more hair-trigger method of crafting a movie would try to recreate the concert as a whole, a concept that could never be done and should, in all honesty, never be attempted.

Isn't that what the 1970 Woodstock documentary was for, anyway?

We never see the stage, nor does Elliot as he attempts to see what all the fuss is about, though the music is omnipresent, starting with Richie Havens' opening number. The focus of the story is on the people involved, getting into the heads of both the firm followers of the counterculture revolution and those who opposed it.

The real Elliot Tiber's book of the same name may have some holes in the facts - apparently his level of involvement is debatable - but there's no mistaking his perspective on the impact of what the festival could and has done in hindsight.

"Taking Woodstock" is a fine bit of '60s biography in honor of the event's 40th anniversary which encapsulates the time and place while never losing sight of the individuals who made it happen and made it legendary.

So tune out the squares, watch the pretty colors and avoid the brown acid.