Practicing for a stage performance is a fun filled adventure with dips in morale, ducking some egos and daring candidness, at least mine was like that during the recitations of that process towards one goal of standing on the stage to get the audience entertained in college days but will it be the same at the age of 92? Yes it does is what we see in Eileen Hall one of the singers in the chorus band jump starting the film in a stage performance. This is a band from Massachusetts calling and meaning it in every word, “Young@Heart”.The documentary follows this band formed by a tough but encouraging manager Bob Cilman. The average age of the band members is 80 as the narration informs and the energy level does not reflect that. They cheer through their turtle step and shout with their heart’s content. Singing songs from “Coldplay” and “Sonic Youth”, they do not like some but are up for the challenge of adopting it as their own song. In a diminishing voice stumbling for timing and tune, it is aged for perfection in soul and thumping joy.
In a film with tragic elements expected out of their health conditions at their age, it does not commit the brutality of using those as exploitation into melodramatic. Documentary makers in the zeal of enumerating their subject strongly go for thrusting it and forget the purity of the reality the medium aids them to do. Director Stephen Walker attends each rehearsal and compresses the grueling hours of practice in five to ten minutes. Behind those are laborious frustrating moments of getting it right in bare vision, voice and hear which are grasped in those snippets of scenes in the film. Bob is the symbol of that strenuous process of singing it like it is meant to be.
It is inspiring immediately to see these old stallions galloping slowly with pain and passion but seeing it in news and an hour forty seven minutes documentary shift far end of the scales in engaging the audience. Hence the goal which is set for these people to drive upon becomes the drive for the film too. Despite that the band has been performing for long time, the journey to the destination this time involves new songs in countable weeks for a show. Most of the prominent singers in the group are conservative music listeners, liking more of opera and classical soothers. And they got to hear rock, pop and what not and regardless they like it or not, need to by heart with heart to it, be in the rhythm and moderate to make it their song.
Bob Cilman is tough and some might interpret him being a jerk on these poor people on the edge of their life. I saw the reality in it. He is not being a jerk but a person knowing his people and giving them the equal consideration they would expect. He pushes them a little bit every time and heartily and honestly appreciates and irritates. And every one though not happy when he is upset deals it like they should. They come back with better performance and dedicate their best.
Many of them have already toured the lips of death with loved ones preparing their loss but through will of miracle stand tall for a little bit more to be warriors against boredom. But some of the performers do pass away during the preparation and while it is tragic, the tone of the band stands the same. In mourning they perform and perform well to respect the demised. We move on as they do respecting them.
It is a film of true emotion and happy ending in a literal way. The power of documentary to give a shortened version of their hard work does not squeeze off it but flourishes on it. Some of the songs I have heard casually and some I have not and the film acclimatizes us with those in rehearsals.
They have a performance for prisoners before the main show. We see the prisoners smile and delve in their thoughts in silence when “Forever Young” is dedicated to one of their friend and performer whose death they come to know an hour before their performance. And in the main show, an auditorium full of crowd is moved to tears when another dedication is given by his duet partner to do a solo of “Fix You” by Coldplay. It is moving and we mourn for the lost ones but we admire them in that melancholy.
“Young@Heart” is a drive, a kick starter to get up and do something and whips us to not dare blame it on age or any other factors. It is a hope for the people laid down by the any factor at all. And director Stephen Walker has a faithful job of putting it together with music videos with fun and comedy, interviews with members on life and death. We in that get to know how to be stubborn passionate person to keep doing what we enjoy. We see them winking death to dare stop them from doing it.
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