Alicia I love this movie so much

SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Lidia Draper Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

Taha Avalos The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

generationofswine Its not at all bad. The homage that U2 is playing seemingly went over a lot of peoples heads causing the illusion that they were comparing themselves to rock and blues greats when, really, they were thanking them.I think the real dividing line here, however, is Bono. You either love him and almost venerate him as a saint among rock stars, or you hate him for the exact same reason, that is, you hate him for caring. And that is why I believe so many people walked away from this documentary.Then again, honestly, it could be because of U2's later day sins. The Joshua Tree was their main break out and a lot of fans will the the "they were good up until they got famous" line.That's not exactly true, with the exception of the argument over Zooropa, they were good through Pop.The fall back, especially following All You Can't Leave Behind and the lackluster follow-ups that tainted the formerly great band are probably the reason this is viewed with hostility.Give it a short, if nothing else than the film is a love letter to American music and general, and the rock and blues idols that inspired one of the best bands of the 80s

amiller-34 At the time of writing, this film is almost 20 years old. When I first watched it I was a half U2 fan, a U1 if you will. Joshua tree was one of my favourite CDs, but despite being a frequent listener of the earlier stuff, I'd remained unhooked. But after seeing Rattle and Hum I was almost literally breathless. It became one of a small handful of VHS music videos that I made the effort to take with me as I moved through life.When I discovered the concept of digital movies, it was the first tape I digitised so I could watch it on my computer, and when video CD came along, I bought that too because the quality was much better than my amateur 'rip'. Naturally when DVD came along I had to have the quality offered by that too. And when I got my first portable video player, well Rattle & h Hum was the first DVD I ripped so I could play it on that (although Pink Floyds pulse had become it's constant companion too).Today, I took delivery of my iPod Touch, and, sad bastard that I am, Rattle and Hum is the first movie I'm watching on it.Why is it I love this film when the music press and the band itself seem to dis this film? I once read an article that suggested the band almost split after the release of the film. Instead they went off and regrouped into their post Achtung baby period. Better they had split and then reformed once whatever itch was out of their system, I think. I still hope they still will.I love this film because it presents the band a their absolute peak. Every inch of concert footage is tight. Bono sounds amazing, much better than I ever saw him. The Edge soars, Larry beats perfect time, while Adam holds everything together. If that isn't enough, the photography is stunning. There is not a single scene in the whole film that would benefit from a different point of view, lighting setup or depth of field (except perhaps the Bono scene 31 minutes in where he tries his hand at graffiti backed by watchtower, personally I'd have made that blurred I think). The visuals are completely stunning and reinforce the bands stature already perfectly presented by just enough short of perfect performance.If I last another 20 years, I'm confident this film will make the Journey with me.

RubyJTuesday I love the movie- and U2- and that review I just read was excellent, I would like to ask whee you got the footage from?! Also , just because it's annoying me, it's not 'Rock and roll stops the traffic', it's 'Rock and roll- Stop the traffic.' I have loved U2 since I was about 10 and ATYCLB came out. My favourite album is the 'Rattle and Hum' album though, and my favourite song is 'Heartland.' I've loved that song ever since seeing it in the film with them on the hill looking over the river. I think that Rattle and Hum is good, but some videos purely of U2's concerts- such as Live at Red Rocks and U2 Go Home- are almost as good, if in a different way.

george.schmidt U2 RATTLE AND HUM (1988) ***1/2 Excellent rockumentary directed with style by Phil Joanou about Irish rock super group U2's U.S tour and their powerful stage presence as well with gorgeous mix of black & white and color photography. Bono for once doesn't appear like a total twit. Rock on!!