Thelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser (Full Screen) | 
| Director: Charlotte Zwerin
Actors: Johnny Griffin (iii), Harry Colomby, Thelonious Monk, Larry Gales, Teo Macero
Studio: Warner Home Video
Category: DVD
List Price: CDN$ 18.74
Buy New: CDN$ 10.71
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New (15) Used (2) from CDN$ 10.71
Rating:  18 reviews
Sales Rank: 17050
Format: Ntsc
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled), French (Subtitled), Portuguese (Subtitled)
Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Picture Format: Academy Ratio
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 5.6 x 0.6
MPN: 11896
ISBN: 0790752980
UPC: 085391189626
EAN: 9780790752983
ASIN: B000053VC9
Theatrical Release Date: 1988
Release Date: January 30, 2001
Availability: Usually ships within 1 - 2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand new Item, factory Sealed. Buy direct from the U.S. and save! We only ship airmail to Canada (7-15 days).Caiman, les prix qu'on aime! Tous nos produits sont neufs. Envoi par avion des Etats-Unis
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com Essential Video
This exemplary documentary about seminal jazz pianist and composer Thelonious Monk reaps the benefits of multiple blessings, including the skilled editorial hand of director Charlotte Zwerin and the patronage of executive producer (and erstwhile jazz pianist) Clint Eastwood. Most vital is the use of extensive 1968 footage, shot by Michael and Christian Blackwood, documenting the sometimes moody, sometimes puckish Monk in the studio, on tour, and off stage, which on its own would make this essential jazz viewing.p In post-World War II America, few cultural upheavals matched bebop for sheer exhilaration. Spawned by jazz musicians whose paydays typically came with larger swing ensembles, bop was as much bastard as stepchild, refining the technical ambitions of its parent while breaking free of swing's formalism to play fast and loose with harmony, melody, and tempo. That mercurial spirit made heroes of high-flying, technically flamboyant players like Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Bud Powell. Monk, by contrast, was as distinctive for his silences, crafting often skeletal melodies distinguished by unexpected, skewed harmonies. At one point dubbed the "high priest of bebop," he was more Zen archer, threading notes, warping chord structure, or stabbing "wrong" keys with a seeming looseness that in hindsight sounds as precise as haiku.p IThelonious Monk: Straight, No Chaser/I provides an intelligent portrait of this often reclusive, sometimes difficult artist, including telling glimpses of his volatility. A stormy studio session with Teo Macero, then Columbia Records' preeminent jazz producer, speaks volumes about Monk's very private approach to his muse. Perceptive interviews and glimpses of Monk's sunnier moments provide added depth, yet the real triumph is the generous catalog of classic Monk songs captured on camera. I--Sam Sutherland/I
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| Customer Reviews: Read 13 more reviews...
 THE Monk documentary April 17, 2004
Patrik Lemberg (Tammisaari Finland)
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
Whenever we see jazz-history programs on TV, we see very little of Thelonious Monk; there's always that short footage of him wearing slim sunglasses, sitting on a fold-out chair playing the piano, and stomping his foot. I had never even heard Monk talk prior to this presentation of him ...it's a good thing there are subtitles ;)brWatching this highly informative and well presented 90-minute documentary about him and his music got me so excited that I had to throw on the old Straight No Chaser record when it was over - I guess I actually needed a chaser.brA common mistake in presentations of musical documentaries is that there isn't enough music; people usually talk over it, but that is NOT the case here; footage from recording sessions and concerts are distinctly kept apart from interviews, which is a big plus. Something that isn't much discussed here, though, are the highlights of Monk's career, i.e. when he had success with certain compositions or recordings,--or even which recordings that were successful--he's more presented on the whole, even though the documentary basically is chronological. There is, however, a Monk Career Highlights feature in text, but it's very short; the career-highlight feature of executive producer Clint Eastwood is twice as long.brStraight No Chaser is probably the most informative documentary made of Monk so far. There's a short theatrical trailer, and subtitles in four different languages, plus this DVD has no problems with either audio or picture, which is nice and unusual. Highly recommended! 4.5 stars!
 Why nobody just wanna do what I ask 'em to do?! September 12, 2003
Daniel Fineberg (Northridge, California USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
So exclaims a frustrated Monk during a late 1960s Columbia recording session, after finishing a haunting run-through of Ugly Beauty and learning that producer Teo Macero neglected to record it. The movie is filled with wonderful private moments like these, though I can't say how much interest it will hold for those not familiar with Monk. For me, however, and for many others who are infatuated with him and his music, the footage in this documentary is gold. The character of Monk is rounded out for us, and we find that he was just as unique and strange in his life as he was in his music. He was truly in his own world, and though for 90 minutes we see him up close, with his musicians, with his wife Nellie, with the Baroness Nica, see his bizarre behavior backstage, at the airport, in the hotel, we are no closer to getting inside his head. For that, one simply needs to hear the music.brAnd the music collected in the movie is astonishing--An early television appearance where Monk is miffed by Count Basie staring at him across the piano during a performance...several shows with a quartet including Charlie Rouse...great footage of the big band sessions of the mid 60s, with Rouse, Johnny Griffin, and Phil Woods scrambling to learn the arrangements...and the great Columbia session, where Monk becomes visibly annoyed, but still has time for a wonderfully tender moment with pal Teo. There are interviews with Monk's managers, his son, Charlie Rouse, and a fine piano duet of Well You Needn't by Tommy Flanagan and Barry Harris, reminding one and all that not only was Monk one of the most distinctive piano players in jazz, but that, along with Ellington and Charles Mingus, he was one of the most brilliant composers as well.
A Butterfly they tried to catch May 16, 2003
Mr. DS Graham (London, UK)
Straight No Chaser offers an abundance of wonderful footage of Thelonious Monk in concert, in transit, at home, in rehearsal, eating, sleeping, spinning in circles, in the studio, signing autographs and of course creating magic at the keyboard. Watching this film is like watching the weather on any given day. At one moment it's cloudy and grey, the next sunny and blue and in between anything could happen, and does. Monk clearly had serious and long term mental health problems, but the music the man created is his real legacy and there is plenty of it here. Towards the end of the film Milt Jackson, Art Farmer, Tommy Flanagan and Barry Harris try to work out the chord progression to one on Monk's songs and as things get more and more complex Milt Jackson (who played with Monk) simply smiles to himself with a combination of perplexity and amusement at the sheer genius of the music.pThe excitement and sense of discovery one feels in witnessing this precious footage does become tempered by the lack of insight into the nature of his music and the full impact of it upon other musicians. The interviews are revealing, especially Harry Colomby (Monk's manager) and a visibly emotional TS Monk Jr. who with understandable difficulty recalls his father's mental problems. Ultimately though, the uniqueness of Thelonious Monk's music shines through. His television performance of Just A Gigolo about half way through is inspiringly honest, utterly sincere (even in it's sardonic humour) and completely absorbing.pMonk's most lasting musical legacy was probably his honesty as a musician and as a man, the rarest quality of all.
Chicken dumplins in Denmark? November 11, 2002
Andy Williamson (Chicago, IL)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Alas, pianist Thelonious Monk was unable to acquire chicken dumplins in Copenhagen during a tour stop. The room service waiter kindly offered him chicken salad. He also ordered mashed potatoes. pThelonious Sphere Monk (1917-1982) is generally credited with inventing what we call be-bop, that fiery brand of jazz that emerged post WW II with Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and others. Be-bop sounded the death-knell of big band/swing like Glenn Miller and Woody Herman. Monk was there at the forefront although it would be years before he garnered the acceptance or credit he deserved. Bouts with mental illness also hampered Monk from time to time. He was hospitalized numerous times. pThis DVD compiles FASCINATING black and white footage of Monk during his 1968 tour. We see Monk smoking, Monk talking and laughing, Monk recording, Monk yelling at Teo Macero ("Why can't nobody do what I tell 'em to do!" an exasperated Monk yells after learning that Macero-in the control booth-failed to record the song the group had just finished), Monk with his wife Nellie, Monk on the street, getting dressed, spinning in circles etc. This is truly amazing footage folks. If only we had such a visual document for every great jazz artist.pThe dialogue is very interesting. Monk himself is often hard to understand, his words often seem to run together. But I was able to understand enough. There are interviews with musicians and managers and others. It is great to see Monk's main saxophonist, Charlie Rouse, commenting on his friend. In one of the highlights of the film we see Monk rehearsing his group prior to a London performance. It is awesome to watch Monk lead Rouse, Phil Woods, and Johnny Griffin (!) thru the chord and tempo changes. Wow. It's also great to *hear* so much great music in a film. This is almost a musical in that sense. pWe don't get any extras except a trailer here, but the strength of the film itself would make it a five star purchase if nothing else were on the disc.pEssential.
you must have ! October 10, 2002
jerome (reston, va United States)
if you are jazz fAN AS IAM ARE AMERICAN HISTORY BUFF THEN THIS FILM IS WHAT YOU MUST HAVE ,THELONIUS IS THE ONE THE WORLD GREATEST MUSICIAN THAT EVER GRACE THIS WORLD HE IN GOOD COMPANY WITH THE LIKES BEETHOVEN ,BACH ROCKMONOFF AND OTHER GENIUSES MUSIC FOR ME IS MY LIFE FORCE AN STAIGHT NO CHASER BRING IT HOME FOR ME THANK YOU FOR THE OFFERING.
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