Tom Waits: Big Time

Chris Blum's 1988 film puts a Tom Waits tour recording into an unusual shape. The songs were filmed live, but in the sections between them Waits plays other characters, and off-stage sequences constantly interrupt the concert. The idea is to break the template of the concert film. The audience is barely seen, there is no backstage and no interview section; in their place are fictional interludes close to theatre. The stage design and lighting build the world of Waits's songs visually; cheap hotels, night clubs and ticket windows recur throughout. The sound leaves the live performance as it was. Who it's for: Tom Waits listeners and those who like experimental concert films. Who it's not for: viewers expecting information about the artist; the film gives no biographical detail.