It Might Get Loud

The Edge, Jimmy Page and Jack White get together for a little jam session. At least, that is what was advertised. Instead, we primarily follow each individual into their past to see how they became the guitar player they are. Interspersed is the jam session, the conversation and interaction of the three in a room together. Throughout the film, anytime we cut to an individual profile, my first thought is "Wait, go back, I want more of them together".

What makes this a strong film is that the individual personalities of each player is evident. The Edge is clearly a technophile, embracing any tool he can find to help the sound coming out of the speaker match the sound in his head. He doesn't really care what he plays. He only cares about what he hears. Jack White, on the other hand, is a bit more of a purist. His roots are blues. I think if he could make money singing/playing old style blues, he would. But putting the blues into his rock/punk style is way of elevating the musicality of thrash (whether the listener can hear it or knows it is irrelevant). He always wants to be a musician and never just a show. There must have been tension between these two, each thinking the other a bit pretentious with their musical decisions. And while it was not a featured part of the film (it really couldn't be, could it?), I could feel the necessity of it based on each individual. Then there is Jimmy Page... just a guy who likes to play guitar. He is the "elder statesman" of the group and seems to truly enjoy watching and listening to the others play. He is genuinely happy when White plays a 45 with a particular sound, appreciating the music and the fact that he can share enjoyment with a colleague. He is genuinely interested in the choice of chords that The Edge chooses on one particular riff, suggesting he would never have played that progression. And in the end, when music trumps personality, these three go unplugged and send us off with a little more music than when we came.
4-stars (out of 5)