David Byrne's American Utopia (2020, Spike Lee) (Patreon)

64/100

Not technically an inferior remake of the greatest concert movie that ever was or will be, of course, but that's inevitably what it sorta feels like. While I can't blame Byrne for performing his greatest hits—that's what the audience wants, and he's not in a position to deny them this late in his career—there's just no way that I can refrain from mentally comparing these perfectly serviceable renditions to their glorious '84 counterparts; "Once in a Lifetime" even sees him partially replicate choreography that contributes to one of the two shots I regularly cite (more or less alternately) as my favorite in all of cinema. (At 4:34 here, after the cut from where I hopefully have it cued. The other comes from Chung King Express.) And I'm unfamiliar with Byrne's newer material, having lost touch following his 1994 self-titled album (though I saw that tour, terrific show). So it was those Heads songs not featured in Stop Making Sense—"Don't Worry About the Government," "Born Under Punches," "Blind," "Road to Nowhere"—that seemed most effective, plus "I Zimbra" which arguably works better here as a march (captured by Lee via mobile shots emphasizing upstage/downstage depth) than in Sense's horizontal proscenium-style staging (viewable as a DVD/Blu supplement; it's not in the film proper). Perfectly enjoyable, and it's genuinely impressive that Byrne remains so vital at 67, but when one of the world's greatest filmmakers is behind the camera, you hope for something more distinctive than what you saw when this same crew served as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live. Could have lived without the voter-registration PSA; not sure why that one dude looks like he rushed over from auditioning to play the Joker in yet another Batman film; was amused when a series of closeups inadvertently(?) revealed that one musician, for whatever reason (presumably something medical), is wearing custom-made shoes designed to make her look as if she's barefoot, like everybody else.