bbbaldie I was amazed to learn how Graceland came about. Turns out many of the songs were instrumentals from the African groups involved which Paul tweaked a bit and then later added lyrics to. What a great tale of creation and cooperation! Paul was vilified by a few for breaking the boycott against South Africa, despite the fact that he performed with exiled artists and also shared with the world some very talented black artists who certainly weren't supporting obnoxious government policies. The angry ones are nowadays pretty much over it, as depicted in the film.What keeps this from being a 10 is the useless addition of Oprah Winfrey and Whoopi Goldeberg. They had nothing to do with Simon's actions, and their opinions matter as much as mine, in other words, not at all. Whoopi, shouldn't you be out pleading the case for Roman Polanski or something? Off to listen to Graceland now...

VivienLancellotti This is the morning after my watching Under African Skies, the documentary movie on Paul Simon and the artists he collaborated with for the Graceland record, some of whom were part of the group Artists Against Apartheid. They jammed, recorded, and later toured with the music that joined white and black cultures in a time where these were in the thick of aggression in South Africa. Simon travelled to where the roots of rhythm were to be found, joining his poetic lyrics to his fellow's music, with their indescribable vividness and rawness, blending African lyrics like "If there is no chicken/You can hunt an owl,/Take its head off and/It looks like a chicken./We eat it on the train" with "she's got diamonds on the soles of her shoes..." He was in South Africa during the culmination of Apartheid, before Nelson Mandela was released from jail. Graceland took two years to make after his ten-day visit to the country. Three weeks after its successful release, it received its first and totally unexpected criticism. It came from the ANC, stating that Simon had extracted and promoted music from South Africa thus breaching the UN decree to boycott the country in all international acts, which was upheld as a last-resort effort against the Apartheid regime. Together with his musical companions Simon had given the world a gem, as some of the best South African musicians joined hands, and voices, and hearts with him to record and tour. Together they created a pure sensation. The listening world received a key of access that would give the battered country a focus of attention under a positive light while, throughout the disastrous regime, many had hopelessly ignored it. They toured in America, Europe, Africa, always under the threat of political aggression connected to reactions to the claims made by the ANC. From another front they were backed by the collaboration of artists like Miriam Makeba, to whose life the film was dedicated. Makeba was one of the many exiled from their homeland, not even being granted permission to attend her own daughter's funeral. The segregation and violence regime robbed South Africans of their land, their integrity, their freedom. The musicians of Graceland, those wizards of groove and soul, gave everything they had to share and contributed to its termination. When Mandela was finally released from jail he personally welcomed Simon to perform Graceland in his country. The film was documented as Simon reunited with the South African musicians of Graceland, 25 years after its initial release, in celebration.

runamokprods This documentary celebrates the 25th anniversary of Paul Simon's great Graceland' album. At the same time it questions Simon's political choices in going to South Africa to record during the U.N. approved cultural boycott, seeking to keep South Africa isolated and thus put more pressure on the white regime to step down. Simon's reply is that artists shouldn't be subject to arbitrary political decisions - they must follow their heart and muse first, and he did more to help raise awareness of South Africa by going than by staying away. The film doesn't take clear sides on these questions and that's fine, a documentary doesn't have to take sides on such a morally complex issue to be successful. But there is something a bit slippery in Simon's somewhat pat answers that seem to be given a pass. And a meeting between Simon and Dali Tambo, the South African head of Artists Against Apartheid' feels awkward and staged, each man explaining to the other their point of view on what happened, ending with what felt like a very forced forgiveness hug. Is the film letting Simon off too easily? Or is his very awkwardness Berlinger's point? (even his embraces of the musicians who played with him on the album feel like they might not have happened is there wasn't a camera rolling) . One telling detail, the fact that Simon took first credit on all the music, even though – as we hear some of the original pre-Simon instrumentals from the album – we realize that many of the songs are almost identical, just somewhat re-arranged by Simon. Taking first writing credit seems like an act of hubris that the film never mentions or questions.

nikkievertshammond What joy! It is rare to find yourself beaming in a dark theatre at the people on the screen, but the joy of the performers, fully engaged with the music, was irresistible. It helped that I'd been privileged to attend the original Graceland tour in the 80's and had actually brought both my daughters, ages 11 and 16, with me. I beamed all through THAT performance as well. "Under African Skies" gives the cool background details about how the whole project started and unfolded, including the political flak Paul Simon and the team went through from the left. What a delight to meet the guys from LadySmith Black Mombaso, and hear the tale from their point of view. Some strange white guy wants to play music with them - such open hearted folks, despite apartheid, they went for it for the love of their music. I want to see this movie again AND I want all my friends and family to see it too. My only problem is if they don't love it as much as I do!