The Stone Roses: Made of Stone

The Stone Roses came back together in 2011 after sixteen years apart. The documentary follows that return: the first rehearsals, the preparation, an unannounced concert in Warrington where only people bringing an old ticket or record were let in, and finally the large shows at Heaton Park in Manchester. Shane Meadows directs. Meadows is from the Manchester area and was a listener of the band from the start, which is why he made it. What works is the audience. Meadows keeps turning the camera off the stage and onto the people queueing; who is there and why is described more fully than the band itself. The tensest passage is the Amsterdam concert, where the drummer Reni leaves the stage early and the old friction inside the group becomes visible for a moment. The film does not cut the scene. The critical distance is limited; Meadows does not hide that he is a fan, and the years after the band broke up are not called to account. The imagery is mixed: black and white sections, archive material and handheld concert footage used side by side. Who it is for: anyone curious about the Manchester music scene and British pop history at the end of the eighties. Who it is not for: the narrative is weak for someone uninterested in the band, the structure is loose, and the film is a celebration.