Shot just after the completion of Taxi Driver, Scorsese's film focuses on the swan song of the group that joined up with and reenergized Dylan during his transition from acoustic to electric, and his seclusion at Big Pink following his motorcycle accident. With guest appearances by Ronny Hawkins, former front man of the Band's earlier incarnation, Muddy Waters, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison and two Neils (Young and Diamond), The Last Waltz also features a raucous performance by a Bob Dylan just off his 1975 Rolling Thunder Review. Preacher hat pulled down over lank curls, Dylan rips into "Baby, Let Me Follow You Down" with a rock star swagger that put the final nails in the coffin of his folk persona. Lavishly shot at San Francisco's Winterland Ballroom, the film marks the end of an era, the passing of one of the late sixties' most critically acclaimed bands and the persistence of Bob Dylan beyond yet another of his incarnations. Scorsese put together a dream team of filmmakers (including Laszlo Kovacs and Vilmos Zsigmond, two of the most influential cinematographers working in the 70s Hollywood studio renaissance) and an elaborate set to record the event on 35mm, an unprecedented attempt at staging rock 'n' roll for the big screen. 35mm
1978, color, 1 hour 57 minutes, USA