The Great Flood (2012)

The Great Flood: Directed by Bill Morrison. The Mississippi River Flood of 1927 was the most destructive river flood in American history. In the spring of 1927, the river broke out of its banks in 145 places and inundated 27,000 square miles to a depth of up to 30 feet. Part of it enduring legacy was the mass exodus of displaced sharecroppers. Musically, the Great Migration of rural southern blacks to Northern cities saw the Delta Blues electrified and reinterpreted as the Chicago Blues, Rhythm and Blues, and Rock and Roll. Using minimal text and no spoken dialog, filmmaker Bill Morrison and composer – guitarist Bill Frisell have created a powerful portrait of a seminal moment in American history through a collection of silent images matched to a searing original soundtrack.

“Video: 10/ Audio: 0 = 5u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe entire film is comprised of 1927 flood footage (some of it very compelling) set to the lackluster easy listening music of Bill Frisell, which gets old very quickly. I dare you not to hit the mute button after 20 minutes. With the exception of a few quick graphics, there is are no explanations, no narration, no story. If I have to sit through a music-only film about the 1927 flood, Iu0026#39;d have rather listened to the actual artists and great blues-men that migrated north in the aftermath of the disaster and made their mark on American music forever. What an unsatisfying waste of great archival footage and grant money!”