Image provided by Apple
Chronicling the multi-decade career of one of the world’s biggest rap groups, Beastie Boys Story reunites the band with the director of some of their most famous videos in a fascinating, massively entertaining and heartfelt ‘live documentary’ that’ll touch even the most hardened viewer.
Full disclosure, I am a massive hip hop fan – mostly from the era in which this looks back upon – and although I loved Beastie Boys, they were perhaps a band that I hadn’t listened to as much since their heyday. The trio from New York, comprising of Michael “Mike D” Diamond, Adam “MCA” Yauch, and Adam “Ad-Rock” Horovitz, has enjoyed over three decades of success, their musical originality seeping through in this equally original approach to looking back at their highlights through a live setting in a Brooklyn theatre. Orchestrated by their friend, director Spike Jonze, the set-up sees Mike D and Adam Horovitz take to the stage to take us on a personal journey through their history; from their early days in New York under different guises to their debut album with Rick Rubin; License To Ill. We’re taken through the conception and execution of their second album; Paul’s Boutique, all the way to the sad passing of Adam Yauch in 2012, the same year that they were inducted into the prestigious Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Rear-projected onto a screen behind them on stage are personal photographs, previously unseen video footage and interviews, all brilliantly edited by Jonze and his crew into the documentary.
It comes across as a deeply personal work, Jonze obviously having a personal connection to the two on stage as well as a professional one, and he can be heard at certain points throughout the performance. Mike D and Adam Horovitz read mostly from autocues but gloriously ad-lib at certain points. The previously written script not only provides an energy to the piece but also a structure to proceedings, while the bits that clearly aren’t in there bring more naturalistic flow with tons of humour. There are also very tender moments, and Horovitz’s handling of recounting the loss of Yauch is particularly moving.
There are also hugely hilarious chunks, like when the pair take a look back at the time when they moved into a massive rented house in the Hollywood Hills and found a wardrobe stashed with amazing ’70s clothing or the demands for one of their first big shows; a cage with go-go dancers along with a massive ceiling-high penis (both of which were accommodated). There is tons of this stuff, the documentary an absolute gold mine for fans of the genre and music nostalgia in general.
Jonze’s and the boys’ approach to making this is pure originality, unwilling to conform to the uniformed manner, something which all of them have applied to their relevant careers. It may alienate non-fans of the genre, but, I know my taste suits the material, but this is unmissable feature filmmaking and, in my opinion, not only Apple’s best movie release to the platform to date but one of the best music documentaries we’ve seen for some time.
Beastie Boys Story is set to stream on AppleTV+ from 24th April.
