U2 was the biggest band in the world around the time of their classic 1987 album THE JOSHUA TREE – so it was inevitable that a movie chronicling their success would follow.
It was also inevitable that there would be an element of a backlash toward the band, which actually started during a tour around the end of the decade when the band were having a desire to ‘go away and dream it all up again’ as lead singer Bono put it to the crowd during a New Year’s Eve concert in 1989.
Directed by Phil Joanou, with cinematography from Jordan Cronenweth (BLADE RUNNER), RATTLE AND HUM shows a different sense of what U2 wanted to achieve, with an album that would team them with the likes of Bob Dylan (LOVE RESCUE ME) and BB King (WHEN LOVE COMES TO TOWN), but it also features one of the most un-bluesy solos by a musician ever, when Bono asks guitarist The Edge to play so.
Utilising a mix of black and white and colour, the film’s strength is in the performances live, notably BAD and WHERE THE STREETS HAVE NO NAME, which was the song that was designed for the stadium experience.
Although the film opened well, it was pretty much for the fanbase, who had more or less seen it within a week or so of its’ release across the world, making it more of an experience on Home Video.
Whilst not a major classic, it does have some moments to behold and reminds people of how significant a success this band were – and still are today over three decades after this film