You have two options in seeing this film, at a regular theater or on IMAX, I picked the later. The Stones have always been larger than life so what better way to see them, then on one of the biggest screens in the world. This is not the first time a concert film of the Stones was showcased on IMAX. The 1991 concert tour for the Steel Wheels album was shot using the IMAX format, showcasing 15 songs during their European leg.

This time around Martin Scorsese is at the helm trying to finesse his magic in capturing the band at New York’s beautiful Beacon Theater. The footage was shot on October 29 and November 1, 2006 on their A Bigger Bang Tour and consists mostly from the second night.

The things that work well for the film are also the things that seem to fail and even disappear in the process. As I said earlier, part of the excitement with the trailer for the movie was the backstage friction between Scorsese and the Stones. There’s no question Scorsese is an amazing artist with the camera. But he is limited by his collaborators. This time it’s with the Stones and they have never been known to play by the rules.

From the beginning you can see Marty’s frustration with the Stones and who can blame him? There’s footage of phone conversations with Mick and the boys on the band questioning having too many cameras. Even as the clock counts down for the curtain to open, the Stone’s have yet to even give Marty and his crew a set list. Now if the film would have continued with this documentary behind the scenes and on stage style, this could have been a very unique film. Unfortunately, I don’t think it would have shined a great light towards the Stones. Which I suspect is why once the boys jump on stage it is completely gone.

You can sense Marty pulling out his hair and frantically trying to feel the pacing during the first few songs. The camera work is very chaotic and the crew seems lost but eventually find their groove as the show goes on. I suspect the reason why most of the footage is from the second night is because the first night was a disaster. None the less, there are some great performances and special guests that make Shine a Light worth it. Every guest makes their mark from Jack White performing a duet during “Loving Cup,” to Christina Aguilera sauntering up to Mick during “Live with Me.”

Arguably the hightlight of the show for both patron and certainly the band is Chicago’s own Buddy Guy. Buddy arrives to share vocals and swap guitar licks during the Muddy Waters classic, “Champagne & Reefer.” Watch Richards and Woods act like little children paying their respects and try to keep up with the blues master. In fact if you watch after the song is done, much like a beaten warrior handling over his weapon to his conqueror, Richards hands off his guitar to Buddy.

Shine a Light is not a bad film, but it could have been so much more. As concert films go it’s not the greatest one out there, I might have to go with Talking Heads Stop Making Sense or even Marty’s earlier live attempt with The Last Waltz, nor is it the worst. Shine a Light is for anyone who is a fan of the Rolling Stones. The set list delivers the hits but throws in a few extra nuggets and surprise guests as well. The Stones are getting old but I never get enough of watching the ballet guitar moves of Richards and the Jagger swagger. These guys are Rock Gods for a reason and they can still kill live.

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