Posted by John Metzger on 02/28/07 00:34

DVD/Documentary Review - Dixie Chicks - Shut Up & Sing

When Natalie Maines, lead singer for the Dixie Chicks, stood in front of
a London audience in March 2003 and made a statement against the
impending war in Iraq, she certainly didn't expect the story to gain the
sort of momentum that would place the future of her band in jeopardy.
Tracing a narrative arc, which begins with an appearance at the Super
Bowl as the best-selling female group in history, and ends with the
troubled staging of its recent international tour, Shut Up & Sing
initially might seem as if it merely was rehashing a tale that has
played so publicly that there's little point in revisiting it so soon.
That assumption, however, would be wrong. Throughout the 90-minute film,
directors Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck dig deeply into the details as
they examine the full-scale repercussions of Maines' offhand remark. By
uncovering the many nuances and side treks that quickly were lost amidst
the rhetoric, the resulting film is transformed into a depiction not
only of how corporate coercion has become the new tool for squashing
Americans' constitutional rights but also how controversy impacts an
ensemble's decisions and personal relationships.

This is an excerpt. To read the complete review, please visit:

http://www.musicbox-online.com/filmreviews-2007/dixiechicks-shutupandsing.html

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