I’ve never been a huge concert film fan, but I am a Scorsese and Stones fan, so I actual went and saw the theatrical release. While not unique, it’s still a solid film full of Stones hits with a few surprises to keep everyone satisfied. You tend to expect a lot when Scorsese’s name is attached to a film and it does have some of his touches. In the end, it’s the songs and the personalities that stand out like the lines in Keef’s face.

Shine a Light is now available on DVD and Blu-ray and if you do have a Blu-ray player, it’s the only way to go. Both versions come with the theatrical release, a behind the scenes featurette and 4 bonus performances that weren’t featured in the final film. Sadly no commentary track by Scorsese or the Stones themselves - now that would have been cool.

The behind the scenes featurette is 15 minutes long but it could have been an hour or longer if I had my way. Much like the beginning of the film, it sheds a light on the behinds the scenes of putting together the film and a concert in general. We get a few more special backstage moments, but I suspect there’s so much more. There’s some of the rehearsal with Buddy Guy but where’s that same footage with Jack White and Aguilera? Where’s the footage of Marty freaking out in the control room? This is the stuff that I want and hoped to see more of on Blu-ray.

The four songs are as solid as the ones that were included in the film. “Undercover of the Night” seems a little tame and almost too loose at times but is still a nice performance. “Paint it Black” sounds great and it’s nice to hear that Jagger remembers how to sing the song again, compared to his performance of it during the Voodoo Lounge Tour. I was really looking forward to hearing Richard’s sing “Little T & A” live, one of my favorites, but Richards is too busy trying to read the lyrics and the songs suffers. “I’m Free” is fine but just not my favorite Stones tune and was from a period before The Stones were really "The Stones".

Shine a Light is for fans of concert films and the Rolling Stones. Set in the intimate and picturesque Beacon Theater, a New York gem, the show looks like it was magic. Pick it up on Blu-ray.

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