Stop Making Sense

STOP MAKING SENSE (1984)

Directed by Jonathan Demme

David Byrne walks onto an empty stage carrying a guitar and a cassette player. “Hi, I’ve got a tape I want to play.” From that wonderfully simple beginning, Stop Making Sense gradually builds into one of the most exhilarating concert films ever made.

Filmed over a series of Talking Heads performances at Hollywood’s Pantages Theatre, Jonathan Demme’s landmark film captures David Byrne, Tina Weymouth, Chris Frantz and Jerry Harrison at the height of their powers. As each song arrives, another musician, instrument or piece of the stage appears, transforming the performance from minimalist beginnings into a joyous explosion of rhythm, movement and sound.

Featuring Psycho Killer, Burning Down the House, Once in a Lifetime, This Must Be the Place and the unforgettable appearance of Byrne’s enormous suit, Stop Making Sense is far more than a record of a concert. It is inventive, strange, funny and gloriously alive.

Four decades later, it remains a film best experienced loud, on a big screen and in a room full of people.

Director: Jonathan Demme
Featuring: Talking Heads – David Byrne, Tina Weymouth, Chris Frantz & Jerry Harrison
Country: USA
Year: 1984
Genre: Concert Film / Documentary / Music
Runtime: 88 minutes
Language: English