Rating: PG13
Genre:
Music [nf]
Theatrical Release: 05/09/2003(USA
Release Date: 02/03/2004
SubTitles: Espanol/English
Dubbed: English
Sound: DD5.1/DTS
Run Time: 96 Minutes
Distributor/Studio: Miramax
Roger Friedman is an entertainment journalist and music fan with a particular love for
R&B and
soul music from the mid-'50s to the pre-
disco era of the early '70s. Owing in part to segregated booking policies and simple lack of proper archiving,
Friedman discovered there is little or no surviving film footage or videotape of many of the greatest artists of the era performing on-stage. However, a large number of the performers in question were still active and performing on a regular basis, and with the help of
documentary filmmakers
Chris Hegedus and
D.A. Pennebaker,
Friedman set out to capture some of his favorites on film while they were still in good form.
Only the Strong Survive features knockout performances from such
R&B legends as
Wilson Pickett,
Jerry Butler,
the Chi-Lites,
Carla Thomas,
Mary Wilson,
Ann Peebles, and many more, as well as interviews in which the artists discuss the ups and downs of their lives in music.
Only the Strong Survive also features performance footage of Memphis
R&B pioneer
Rufus Thomas, who had passed on at the age of 84, less than two months before the film was screened at
the 2002 Sundance Film Festival.
~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
