Neil Young: Heart of Gold (2006)
86%RT Audience Score: 78%
Awards & Nominations: 1 win & 2 nominations
Proving that it’s neither better to burn out nor fade away, Neil Young: Heart of Gold works both as a concert film and a meditation on mortality
Neil Young: Heart of Gold is a film that captures the essence of Neil Young’s music and his performance. Critics have mixed opinions about the film, but for me, it was a lovely experience. The film showcases Young’s greatness and his heartfelt delivery, which makes it an emotional experience. The audience’s fore-knowledge of his brain aneurysm adds enough weight to the film, making it a spellbinding experience. The film is a potent brew of humanity, empathy, and dignity, and it’s better to watch it than to fade away.
Production Company(ies)
Columbia Films, Anouchka Films, Orsay Films,
Distributor
NA
Release Type
Filming Location(s)
Ryman Auditorium – 116 5th Avenue N., Downtown, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG for some drug-related lyrics
Year of Release
2006
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Dolby Digital DTS
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:NA
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Streaming): Aug 30, 2011
Genre(s)
Documentary/Music
Keyword(s)
starring Neil Young, Emmylou Harris, Pegi Young, Ben Keith, Spooner Oldham, Rick Rosas, directed by Jonathan Demme, written by Jonathan Demme, Tom Hanks, documentary, music, PG, box office gross, budget, reviewed by Andrew Pulver, Trevor Johnston, Matt McNally, David Edelstein, Evelyn McDonnell, Nick Schager, Fernando F Croce, Kam Williams, David Edwards, Leo Goldsmith, Jeffrey Chen, Pete Croatto, concert film, Prairie Wind, Far from Home, Heart of Gold, Harvest Moon, Comes a Time, Ryman Auditorium, Nashville, Tennessee, interviews, acoustic encore, mortality, Neil Young’s music, Ellen Kuras, camera, audience, brain aneurysm, emotional experience, humanity, empathy, dignity, revelation, 2006’s best movies
Worldwide gross: $2,201,933
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $3,247,096
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,296
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 354,100
US/Canada gross: $1,904,606
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $2,808,641
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,952
US/Canada opening weekend: $53,908
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $79,496
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,025
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Emmylou Harris – self
Pegi Young – self
Ben Keith – self
Spooner Oldham – self
Rick Rosas – self
Director(s)
Jonathan Demme
Writer(s)
NA
Producer(s)
Jonathan Demme, Tom Hanks
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
1 win & 2 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (98) | Top Critics (44) | Fresh (88) | Rotten (10)
Pleasant, but hardly pulse-quickening stuff.
October 7, 2006 | Rating: 3/5
Andrew Pulver
Guardian
TOP CRITIC
…Even those who haven’t followed Young’s every recent move could well find his performance here surprisingly captivating.
October 5, 2006
Trevor Johnston
Time Out
TOP CRITIC
…Neil Young has experimented with film many times, but this is by far the most accessible cinematic treatment of his music; a troubadour at the top of his game.
October 3, 2006 | Rating: 3/5
Matt McNally
BBC.com
TOP CRITIC
The best moments in the film are when Ellen Kuras’s camera just sits there taking in the whole stage, the whole gorgeous ecosystem.
May 12, 2006
David Edelstein
New York Magazine/Vulture
TOP CRITIC
It doesn’t penetrate his craggy mystique, or make us hear his music in a new way. Instead, it’s the same old choir song.
April 7, 2006 | Rating: 2/4
Evelyn McDonnell
Miami Herald
TOP CRITIC
Vividly captures Young’s greatness by simply letting him do his thing.
April 6, 2006 | Rating: A
Nick Schager
Lessons of Darkness
TOP CRITIC
Lovely
August 30, 2009
Fernando F. Croce
CinePassion
Proves it’s better to burn out, than to fade away.
June 16, 2007 | Rating: 2/4
Kam Williams
Upstage Magazine
The result is simply spellbinding.
October 6, 2006 | Rating: 4/5
David Edwards
Daily Mirror (UK)
Young’s presence, his heartfelt delivery, and the audience’s fore-knowledge of his brain aneurysm add enough weight to make the film a surprisingly emotional experience
August 7, 2006
Leo Goldsmith
Not Coming to a Theater Near You
A potent brew of humanity, empathy, and dignity.
June 17, 2006 | Rating: 9/10
Jeffrey Chen
Window to the Movies
Regardless of what you call it, Heart of Gold is a revelation and one of 2006’s best movies.
June 15, 2006 | Rating: 4/5
Pete Croatto
Filmcritic.com…
Plot
Neil Young: Heart of Gold is a concert film that combines interviews with Neil Young and other band members with the premiere of various songs from the album “Prairie Wind,” as well as a special acoustic encore of older Young songs.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
No goofy or funny or odd comments were found in the Fresh Kernels database for Neil Young: Heart of Gold.
Jonathan-Demme.jpg
