Inadvands Boring, over-political, tech fuzed mess

BoardChiri Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

Ginger Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

Logan By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Jeffrey Jordan Big Time is magnificent,A live tour-de-force by one of America's greatest performers.It is a concert film of his Frank's Wild Years Tour circa 1987,but I am not certain it was filmed live in concert.Some performances,if not all,have a staged studio feel to them,but I'm probably wrong,and it does not matter anyway,as all the performances are truly excellent representations of his songs.There are little vignettes between each number,which are strange and entertaining.A gunshot sound is heard when it cuts from one thing to another,like in Masculine Feminine,Tom Waits appears in nearly all of the between songs vignettes.In one he is seen sitting on the floor of the theater's washrooms snapping playing cards into a hat on the floor several feet away from him,saying"She loves me,she loves me not" and "ooh!Got one-lost one"when a card falls off the hat onto the floor.Symbolizing the fall of the Italian socialist-communist regime.He is seen addressing the "audience" at times in his wonderful winning style of between-song-banter,which will either make you laugh out loud or at least smile real big.In one he is the usher,telling the viewer that you are late.And then wants to sell you a watch from his catalog displayed on his forearm.In another he is working the ticket booth (presumably taking over for the mysterious Oriental lady who was seen doing it earlier in the film,and who appears a few more times)fast asleep until the phone rings and he says blearily "I'm here!" and then starts buying and selling stocks and bonds.Please do not let any of this scare you off from seeing this film,I'm just a terrible reviewer.Instead of concentrating on this little stuff,I should be describing the important stuff,which is of course the music.I would like to list the songs performed,but I don't feel like searching through my clutter for the information.But I can tell you they are all culled from Swordfishtrombones,Rain Dogs and Frank's Wild Years,w/1 or 2 exceptions.It is a shame that it is so difficult to obtain a copy of this film.There are a lot of Waits fans out there doing without.I was extremely lucky to get my VHS copy.I ordered it from Blockbuster and 3 years later they called and said it was there.40 miles away.It was well worth it.If you are a fan of Waits,you owe it to yourself to obtain a copy somewhere,somehow of Big Time.It cries out to be released on DVD,just listen...be vewy vewy quiet..."release me"...hear that?

mcctw55 A must for any Tom Waits fan...but..."not for everyone." Waits is; strange, funny and a talented song writer, musician and actor. He sings, plays piano, and guitar over his all original material is this wild live show, with added video...I first heard him in 1979 on a college radio station, he's not top 40 material. I think he is great...read the lyrics to his song "Cold Cold Ground" and maybe you'll see what I mean. Most people can't get beyond his gravel-like voice, but those who can will know what a great poet/artist he is...usually musicians. It's a shame this is not been made available in DVD. It is out of print on VHS. I bought a used VHS of this concert/movie on ebay for around $30. I suggest buying a Waits CD like "Rain Dogs", or "Franks Wild Years"...or watching him act in "Down By Law, or "Iron Weed" before viewing this. You'll like him, or you won't. I believe Tom Waits is an American original...one of a kind.

morrisonm-1 This movie is perfect for those who have an appreciation of the artistry of Tom Waits, or who can say with some degree of honesty that they watch and enjoy movies on the IFC channel. I would not recommend this movie however to those who are unfamiliar with his work. The combination of his visual imagery and unique sound is likely to be too much for the uninitiated. You should be comfortable with his music before watching Big Time. This warning of course does not include IFC watchers who can handle just about any degree of weirdness. The movie itself is a series of vignettes very loosely tied together, with Tom as the central character. Each includes or at least introduces one or two songs and a monologue. The vignettes include portions of concert shows but all are set within the environs of a rather seedy theatre, including such areas as the loge, the bathroom and the ticket booth. It is a great treat to see Tom Waits performing live. If you are familiar with and enjoy his music you will surely enjoy this movie. Turn the sound down and you will quickly realize that the visual aspect of the performance is structured much as his music is. The result is a wild agglomeration of disparate elements that cuts to the quick but delivers a soul satisfying experience.

Andrew Schoenhofer Great footage of Waits and his band. Carney on reeds and Ribot on guitars are well worth the listening, if you can find the video. Waits outrageous on stage.Ribot stayed with Waits throughout the '90s, as well as recording on his own and with others; Carney one of the hot jazzers of the late '90s with his group Oranj Symphonette.Songs are from the Swordfishtrombones/Frank's Wild Years/Rain Dogs era. You'll never hear them the same way after seeing the film.