There are few movies I’m as ecstatically excited for (or have ever been, for that matter), as much as Taking Woodstock, a soon-to-be-released film due out in theaters on August 14, 2009.

Based on the book Taking Woodstock: A True Story of a Riot, a Concert, and a Life by Elliot Tiber and Tom Monte, the film tells the real-life story of Tiber and his family and how the Woodstock Music Festival ended up in their backyard (literally).

The Plot

Elliot Tiber (played by comedian Demetri Martin) lives with his parents in Bethel, NY, where they own a small motel which is badly in need of refurbishment. Money is really tight, though, and the family is at risk of losing the property unless they can come up with an exorbitant amount of money.

When Tiber hears of a displaced hippie music festival in need of an area of land to have their festival, he contacts the festivalís coordinator, Michael Lang (played by Broadway veteran Jonathan Groff sporting an awesome hairdo), and gets together with Max Yasgur (Eugene Levy) to offer up Yasgur’s farmland and the Tiber family’s motel. We all know, of course, that many more (try a few hundred thousand more) people showed up than expected, and so began the four legendary days of peace, love, and music known as Woodstock.

Other notable cast members include Liev Schreiber, Emile Hirsch, and Dan Fogler. The film is directed by the incomparable Ang Lee (of Brokeback Mountain fame, among others). Taking Woodstock first premiered at the 2009 Cannes  Film Festival.

My Take

I had the unfortunate privilege of being born almost 20 years too late to attend Woodstock (not a day goes by where I don’t ponder the possibility that I was born in the wrong decade), but I’m a big enough music and Woodstock lover to have very high expectations of this film. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried when I saw notable comedians like Martin, Levy, and Fogler on the cast list, and immediately hoped the producers and director weren’t going to turn this amazing story into an American Pie-like comedic depiction.

After viewing the trailer, my worries were immediately gone. The music, outfits, and general layout of the film look to be extremely authentic.

When I saw the short snipit of Liev Schreiber in the trailer where they show his transvestite character, Vilma, talking to Tiber, I immediately thought, THIS is gonna ROCK. It was sort of the same feeling I felt when I saw Robert De Nero in Stardust as the flamboyant Captain Shakespeare.

The film is rated R for graphic nudity, drug use, language, and sexual content, but let’s be honest – you couldn’t make a remotely authentic depiction of the counterculture revolution with anything less.

I feel the ideals and feelings of the counterculture revolution are coming back full-force today. My generation might not completely understand how significant and trying the late 1960s were, but anyone can see that the ideas of peace and equality are back in the wake of a vastly unpopular overseas war and corrupt leadership (sound familiar?). I hope Taking Woodstock will find great success in the box offices and hearts of the world and help people to see that now is the first time since the Vietnam era where we need to pass on the ideas of love and harmony, and just give peace a chance.