Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders from Mars

Colour, 35 mm
USA, 1973, 100 min
Section: Forum of Independents

Synopsis

David Bowie’s final electrifying performance as Ziggy Stardust in 1973 at London’s Hammersmith Odeon Theatre. The feature-length film captures the aura surrounding one of the most unusual stars of the contemporary music scene. Framed by a smattering of behind-the-scenes footage, the bulk of the film concerns the actual concert, notable as the final time that Bowie would perform under the Ziggy Stardust persona, an announcement that, back then, led many fans to mistakenly believe Bowie was retiring altogether. The film features numerous songs from Ziggy Stardust, Hunky Dory, Aladdin Sane and other Bowie albums, including Ziggy Stardust, Moonage Daydream, Changes, and Space Oddity, as well as a cover of the Velvet Underground’s White Light/White Heat. While a shortened version of the film was broadcast on television in 1974, the film did not receive a full theatrical release until 1983.

About the director

D. A. Pennebaker (b. 1925, Evanston, Illinois, USA) director, cinematographer, editor and producer, is widely regarded as one of the pioneers of cinéma-vérité filmmaking. Daybreak Express (1953), Brussels Loops (1957), Lambert, Hendricks&Co. (1964), Hier Strauss (1965), Don’t Look Back (1967), Monterey Pop (1968), Little Richard: Keep On Rockin’ (1969), Original Cast Album-Company (1970), One P. M. (1972), Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1973), Energy War (1977), Town Bloody Hall (1979), DeLorean (1981), Rockaby (1983), Jimi Plays Monterey (1986), Shake!: Otis at Monterey (1987), 101 (1989), Jimi Hendrix Live (1989), The Music Tells You (1992), The War Room (1993), Keine Zeit (1996), Moon Over Broadway (1997), Down from the Mountain (2000), Only the Strong Survive (2002).