The 1968 documentary “Mingus” finds legendary bass player Charlie Mingus at a key moment in the unraveling of his pride — his unfair eviction by the city of New York from the rat-hole studio where he planned to build a jazz school.
What does this great musician do in his time of crisis? As if in the heat of the moment of a raging bass solo, he lays down the groove and riffs on it. Mingus smokes his briar, and says some smart things to the camera about jazz, women, parenthood, politics, race, family, and friendship.
In one scene Mingus shows us an example of the same cheap rifle that assassinated President Kennedy, and, with a smile, uses the gun to blow a hole in the wall of his now-ex-studio, an act motivated by a short temper almost as legendary as his bass playing.
Reichman interweaves stunning live performances of “All The Things You Are” and “Take The ‘A’ Train” to give us a searing portrait of a turbulent artist in even more turbulent times.
Dir: Thomas Reichman, 1968, 35mm, 58 min.
WHEN: 8:00PM
ADMISSION: $10 General Admission
WHERE: The Cinefamily at The Silent Movie Theatre
ADDRESS: 611 N. Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles, Ca 90036
PHONE: (323) 655-2510
CONTACT: www.cinefamily.org
