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List Price: $9.99 | | Label: Delta
Salesrank: 97992
Released: July 24, 1999 |
| Our Price: $74.98 |
| Used Price: $17.65 |
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MPAA Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
The career of one of rock music’s premier musicians is celebrated in The Disney Channel’s award-winning Going Home series. Robbie Robertson’s music covers nearly the entire spectrum of rock ‘n’ roll, spanning the decades. This special utilizes a wide array of film footage that has never before been telecast.
Going Home Reviews:
Great Documentary 
2009-11-12 - I love Robbie Robertson and his documentary is great, he takes you back to his beginnings and journeys through his career.
Robertson suffers Selective Memory 
2007-08-24 - Even though I am a fan of Robbie Robertson and looked forward to seeing an autobiographical project, I found this film too self-serving. Robertson only credits his former Band-mates at the 1994 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Rick Danko, standing behind him, smiles and silently accepts Robertson's late and scant thanks. At no point during this film's ongoing narrative interview does Robertson pay full credit to Levon Helm, Rick Danko, Garth Hudson or Richard Manuel - all fine multi-instrumentalists and (in the case of 3 of them) terrific singers. I find this insulting, after all there were five members of The Band and they perported never to have a 'leader'
Robertson was born in Toronto, to a Mohawk mother and a Jewish father. The film focusses entirely on his Native American side, and early on he speaks of childhood summers on the Six Nations Reservation. The rest of his early life seems to have been erased. The cultural blend that would have made this visual autobiography fascinating is missing. What a shame.
Most of the songwriters Robbie recalls meeting at the Brill Building on his first trip to New York were Jewish. When the opening visual sequence of 'The Last Waltz' is played, we are not treated to the theme tune, which has a notable Kletzmer feeling to it.
As interesting as Robertson's musical career has been, this film is striking more for what is omitted, than for what is covered. The Band's back catalogue is one of the most eclectic in modern music: This film would have you believe that two songs, 'The Weight' and 'The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down', were all the group recorded between the 'Basement Tapes' and 'The Last Waltz'.
This film is expensive and hard to track down. I'm still not sure if the expenditure was worth it. Robertson's self-regard robs Band-fans of the colourful tapestry of musical history they should have been treated to after so long. Unfortunately we cannot rely on 'The Last Waltz' for a complete overviwew of The Band either. Robertson and Scorcese made sure of that, as we are reminded in several conversational interludes in this film.
A must for fans of Robertson, The Band and Scorsese
2007-05-08 - Very well made piece with Robbie reminiscing over his entire career with complete candor and amusing anecdotes. The conversational style as opposed to a more formal documentary approach is refreshing and absolutely perfect for Robertson's own brand of storytelling and music. Some great footage of The Band and a fun conversation between Robbie and friend Martin Scorsese where they talk about Woodstock, THE LAST WALTZ, scoring films and the period after both men had been divorced that Robbie moved into Marty's place in Manhattan. There's even footage of the induction ceremony to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and behind-the-scenes on the set of Sean Penn's THE CROSSING GUARD (1995). This is a true must for all fans of Robbie, The Band and Scorsese and makes a wonderful companion piece to THE LAST WALTZ (1978). Hard to find this disc anymore, but well worth the effort.
Ruined finery 
2006-10-07 - After reading Levon Helm's book and Robbie not giving the Band members other than himself money for the film The Last Waltz and that poor Rick Danko's death being due to overwork and not enough money It is real hard to watch this film even if it has some good older footage of The Band and Bob Dylan. This a good example of why old artists should not star in films they look like ruined finery. I just finished watching Lynyrd Skynyrd's Freebird The Movie and it was just great. They were young and played Sweet Home Alabama and Freebird and it was good not like this vain attempt by Mr. Perfect to take us down to hypeville. His later songs about Indians do not do them justice and seem contrived.
Good old footage; bad new footage 
2003-10-25 - This DVD is worth a glimpse for the old film of the Band & a very young Bobby Dylan, but it's hard to take the 90s version of Robbie Robertson seriously when he has that ridiculous piece on his head. Depressing viewing indeed. Wow, how has his hair stayed so brown when all his contemporaries are gray? Incredible!
More importantly, his post-Band music is not much chop (it's embarrassing, actually) and he comes across as incredibly vain, single-handedly taking credit for all The Band's music. Still, he has some interesting turns of phrase and the interviews aren't bad.
Far better is Levon Helm's autobiography "This Wheel's On Fire" (1556524056)
