Underplayed Gems

Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) (2021)

Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) poster
Original title
Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)
Directed by
Questlove
Genre
documentary film
Country
United States
Runtime
1h 57m
Rated
PG-13
Rating
7.6 of 10 from 223 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
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How it feels

This documentary uncovers footage from the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, a series of concerts that featured major Black musicians and performers. The film shows the music and the social atmosphere of the time, highlighting an event that was largely overlooked in mainstream media.

celebratoryhistoricupliftingenergeticnostalgicculturally-richjoyfulrevelatory

What happens

Summer of Soul (...or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised) is a 2021 American independent documentary film about the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, directed by Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in his directorial debut. It had its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 28, 2021, where it won the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award in the documentary categories. It had a limited theatrical release in the U.S. by Searchlight Pictures on June 25, 2021, before expanding and being released for streaming on Hulu the next weekend. The second half of the movie's title is taken from the 1970 poem and song "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised", written by Gil Scott-Heron. It offered a sharp and satirical critique of the media's lack of coverage of civil rights activism and the reality of change and revolution taking place in the streets and on campuses across America. The film received acclaim from critics, with particular praise given to the restoration of the footage used. It won numerous awards, including Best Documentary Feature at the 6th Critics' Choice Documentary Awards, where it won in all six categories in which it was nominated, Best Documentary at the 75th British Academy Film Awards, Best Documentary Feature at the 94th Academy Awards, and Best Music Film at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards. It has been considered one of the best films of the 21st century. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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