An odd set of bookends: 'Shine a Light' and 'Young at Heart'

Young at Heart

Directed by Stephen Walker

Rated PG

(Rated three and one half stars)

Shine a Light

Directed by Martin Scorsese

Rated PG-13

(Rated three and one half stars)

By Bruce Bulloch

Louise Canady became a rock star in her eighties. The thought boggles but the reality turns out to be a lot of fun.

"Young at Heart" is a documentary that follows the triumphs and troubles of a band of the same name - The Young at Heart Chorus, comprised of a group of senior citizens who found fame covering some surprisingly contemporary rock songs. They perform everything from "Schizophrenia" by Sonic Youth to an ironic take on the Ramones' "I Wanna Be Sedated." Louise, herself, does a wicked cover of the Clash's "Should I Stay or Should I Go," decked out in track shoes that you soon realize are there more for balance than as a fashion statement.

The very concept of a group of walker-wielding, oxygen-toting elders breaking into hard-edged rock songs is enough to put a smile on your face before the film even begins. "Young at Heart" delivers on that promise and more. It's impossible to resist tapping your foot along with the band's exuberant rendition of "Stayin' Alive."

To its credit, "Young at Heart" doesn't settle for a soft-focus Hallmark moment about spunky seniors putting on a show. It delves into the work-a-day grind of rehearsals complicated by the effect of short-term-memory loss on the singers' ability to keep the lyrics straight. Meanwhile, the band's fifty-something leader, Bob Cilman, comes across as a combination of cheerleader, taskmaster, and a bit of a diva (the perfect combination for any rock-band leader). But this look behind the scenes adds a layer of respect onto the charm of their performances. This is a group of people who find themselves on the edge of life, refusing to surrender as the inevitable catastrophes of aging slowly thin their ranks.

The result is a story that gracefully shifts between raucous fun and touching pathos. Walking out of the theater your thoughts are likely to drift back to the band's performance of Bob Dylan's "Forever Young," given before a group of prison inmates soon after hearing that one of the band members had passed away. The young prisoners and band members are generations apart and yet the song creates a bridge between lives that have each, in their own way, suffered a collision with fate.

Many films that are described as "uplifting," carry with them a slight aftertaste of manipulation. Not so with "Young at Heart." Here is a film that makes you feel good the old-fashioned way. It earns it.

The feeling you'll have walking out of "Shine a Light," director Martin Scorsese's documentary about the Rolling Stones, will be harder to describe, you'll be too dizzy to tell.

The driving rhythm of the Stones' music seems to shake the very molecules of everything around them (If the makers of "Star Trek" had only thought to use "Jumpin' Jack Flash" as the sound track for their battle scenes, those photon torpedoes would have been much more believable).

Scorsese builds his film around the Stones' unearthly energy both onstage and off - and he has a lot of fun doing it. Scorsese plops himself into the film, playing the some times befuddled voice of reason, trying to wrap structure around virtuoso creativity that is often an inch away from chaos.

The Stones are in top form and even bring on a few guests - including Jack White and Buddy Guy - just to mix things up a bit.

"Shine a Light" strikes a blow for poetic justice by putting Christina Aguilera on the same stage with Mick Jagger. Aguilera with her rich, fearless voice always seemed to find herself at a disadvantage in the prissy, pop-princess world of her generation. Here she is in her element, and while Scorsese has his talented hands full keeping up with Jagger's frenetic energy, Aguilera matches him bump for grind, turning "Live With Me" into a highlight of the film.

Scorsese fleshes out his portrait of the Stones with backstage and archival footage. The amazing thing about this band that has been performing for forty years is that there isn't a whiff of nostalgia. Like sex itself, the Stones are timeless.

If "Young at Heart" brings a smile to your lips, "Shine a Light" is a film that will loosen you teeth. In an odd way they make a perfect set of bookends.

Bruce Bulloch may be reached via wseditor@robinsonnews.com