Neil Young: Heart of Gold 2006

Evelyn McDonnell, Miami Herald: 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. Read more

Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: Heart of Gold is the work of an egalitarian lover of music. Demme uses the camera as a divining rod, pointing at the man with the guitar. Read more

Ted Fry, Seattle Times: If you're looking for a piece of entertainment that's a superlative showcase by and for one of popular music's most iconic figures, search no further than Neil Young: Heart of Gold. Read more

Bob Townsend, Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Neil Young: Heart of Gold, director Jonathan Demme's lovingly shot document of Young's August 2005 performances at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, has to rank among the most heartfelt concert films ever made. Read more

Keith Phipps, AV Club: It's hard to film icons like Young as anything but icons, but Demme's film gets past the legend, zooming in on Young's aged, heroic face and finding an artist as human as the rest of us. Read more

Larry Rodgers, Arizona Republic: When it comes to pop-music icons, Neil Young is the full package. Read more

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: Heart of Gold -- filmed in much the same manner [as Stop Making Sense], with pristine sound and a notable lack of audience shots -- is a deeper and infinitely more touching piece of work. Read more

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: It's the record of a life, a musical and spiritual autobiography, and as directed by Jonathan Demme it taps into the kind of unashamed, unsentimental emotion that's become increasingly rare in films of any kind. Read more

Bruce Westbrook, Houston Chronicle: Some defiant rockers are forever young. This one is in name only. Read more

Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor: All in all, a visual and musical feast. Read more

Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post: Like its troubadour, Heart of Gold is smart and generous with its seeming simplicity. Read more

Tom Long, Detroit News: Neil Young: Heart of Gold is one of the best live concert films ever made. If you like Neil Young, that is. Read more

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: Young, wizened yet valiant, his voice still braying at the moon, delivers these songs of aging and loss as if caught in a beautiful dream of what lies waiting for him on the other side. Read more

Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press: It does what the best movies of any genre do: turn the produced and scripted into something sincere and honest. Read more

Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News: Few artists are so adept at addressing the past and embracing the future all at once. And few recent films have so gracefully captured a musician at a specific point in his time. Read more

Ella Taylor, L.A. Weekly: But this new concert movie is also a warm, unhurried paean to the considered pains and pleasures of middle age. Read more

Jan Stuart, Newsday: To see and hear Neil Young: Heart of Gold is like soaking in a warm tub filled to the brim with luxuriant, life-restoring music. Read more

David Edelstein, New York Magazine/Vulture: The best moments in the film are when Ellen Kuras's camera just sits there taking in the whole stage, the whole gorgeous ecosystem. Read more

Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger: In his new concert film, though, Neil Young: Heart of Gold he shows his age. And embraces it. Read more

Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: Dropping in amusing anecdotes and tender memories, a deeply reflective Young revisits -- and often reinterprets -- both his recent and classic work. Read more

Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: This Prairie Wind concert is one long sweet twang of wistful not-quite-regret. Read more

Robert Denerstein, Denver Rocky Mountain News: One of the new year's most satisfying films. Read more

Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com: A love letter to the consistency, and the familiarity, of that voice. Read more

Joel Selvin, San Francisco Chronicle: Another snapshot of his fabled career that's of little interest to anyone outside his many fans. Read more

Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune: It will be hard for any Young devotee not to succumb to the music, as Demme turns the movie theater into a concert hall. Read more

Peter Howell, Toronto Star: A film that is both a celebration and a wistful look back. Read more

Trevor Johnston, Time Out: ...Even those who haven't followed Young's every recent move could well find his performance here surprisingly captivating. Read more

Claudia Puig, USA Today: The mesmerizing, heart-tugging concert film Heart of Gold confirms Neil Young's stature as a national treasure. Read more

Robert Koehler, Variety: The concert film has never looked or sounded classier than Jonathan Demme's superbly crafted Neil Young: Heart of Gold. Read more

Tom Charity, Village Voice: It's a sentimental show, sure, but Young's pantheistic hymns to family, friendship, and 'the time we share together' are nothing if not heartfelt. Turns out it's better to fade away after all. Read more

Desson Thomson, Washington Post: Director Demme is smart and sensitive enough to sit back and listen to the music without attention-getting intrusions. Read more