Old man takes a look at his life

Prior to undergoing a surgical procedure to treat a brain aneurysm, Neil Young wrote and recorded the songs for his recent album, “Prairie Wind.” After the aneurysm was successfully treated -- by inserting a small platinum coil into Young’s brain, tricking his body into healing the aneurysm -- he collaborated with director Jonathon Demme to make the concert film “Neil Young: Heart of Gold.”

This is a great concert movie. The performances by Young and his band are flawless. Demme’s camera work makes you feel like you’re sitting up against the stage in the front row.

Rather than bombarding the audience with a rapid succession of jump cuts to artificially create a sense of kinetic energy, Demme pulls in close on Young’s face to accent the power and intimacy of the songwriting. He allows the camera to sit for long periods in the same position, taking extended shots of the entire band or individual performers. For anyone who’s sick of feeling dizzy while watching music videos that suffer from ADD, this is a refreshing change of pace.

Demme also leaves out the gratuitous shots of the audience cheering before, after and during each song. Capturing the essence of Neil Young and his band is the sole focus of the film. This methodical approach allows you to forget that you’re watching a concert movie.

“Neil Young: Heart of Gold” was shot during a two-night performance at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. It’s an old theater with beautiful acoustics and a storied history. This is a perfect setting for Neil Young. The old theater meshes with the reflective nature of Young’s music and his appreciation of performers who have long since passed.

The first half of the film is a performance of the album “Prairie Wind.” The second half is a selection of older work that blends into the “Prairie Wind” theme. Most of these additional songs come from the albums “Harvest” and its sequel, “Harvest Moon.”

The music reflects on time, aging and mortality. In “Here for You,” Young sends a message to his 21-year-old daughter: He understands her need to break free and become an independent woman, but he also wants her to know that she’ll never be alone. The song is meant to be a constant reminder to his daughter of his affection, but it’s hard not to see this as a sad and affectionate goodbye from a man who, when he wrote the song, didn’t yet know whether he would survive much longer.

“This Old Guitar” is about an acoustic instrument that Young used to write many of the songs from “Harvest,” and which he still plays. The guitar was originally owned by country legend Hank Williams, who played it on the same stage in Nashville. The lyrics speak of Young’s love for the instrument, and also the inevitability that someday it will pass into another’s hands.

When he reprises hits like “Old Man,” a song he wrote for the elderly caretaker of a ranch he bought in the early 1970s, the song has a new meaning and feels even more relevant now that he’s 60 years old -- it becomes a way of reflecting on living a full life.

The most touching moments come when Young and his wife, Pegi, make eye contact (she sings backup vocals). Both of them understand the fragility of the moment, especially in the light of his recent diagnosis and treatment. Even when there’s darkness in the material, this relationship makes the performance feel like a triumph and a celebration.

Jonathon Demme’s prior work includes the Talking Heads concert movie “Stop Making Sense” and the Spalding Gray performance film “Swimming to Cambodia.” He also directed “The Manchurian Candidate” and the Oscar-winning “Silence of the Lambs.”

In “Neil Young: Heart of Gold,” he further solidifies his reputation for being able to capture brilliantly both the mood and presence of live performances. He opens the film with home-movie footage of driving into Nashville, which helps set the stage for reflective nature of this performance. The concert is shot using Kodak film, the colors of which echo the golden tones in the music.

The care and thoughtfulness put into making this movie is reminiscent of Martin Scorsese’s “The Last Waltz,” which documented the final performance by The Band.

In an era when modern rockers like Gwen Stefani seem more concerned about hair and clothes than songwriting, Neil Young is a reminder of a time when successful musicians didn’t have to look like fashion models. They just had to be able to write great songs and be great performers. When you’ve got Emmylou Harris as a backup singer, you know you’ve got one heck of a band.

“Neil Young: Heart of Gold” is in limited release, and this is one of those times when we’re privileged to live in an area where virtually every movie is screened.

As with “Stop Making Sense,” the best way to see this film is in a theater. Even the best home theater system can’t compare to experiencing this movie on a giant screen.

I had the pleasure of seeing “Neil Young: Heart of Gold” at the Arclight Theater in Hollywood, a theater designed for movie lovers. It’s worth the drive, and the extra couple of bucks for admission, to go to this theater to see any movie you consider special. It would be nice to see an Arclight appear in place of the now-defunct Edwards Theater on Warner Avenue.

* JIM ERWIN is a technical writer and computer trainer.

20060216h03bw3ke(LA)