‘Big Easy Express’ Review – LA Film Fest

Concert-tour documentary Big Easy Express takes a musical journey into the heart of America. Filmmaker Emmett Malloy commandeered iconic Amtrak trains for the adventure, an exclusive tour of America through the eyes of UK artists and Grammy winners Mumford & Sons, U.S. pop-folk artists Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, and Nashville’s blue-grass/folk band Old Crow Medicine Show.   For eight-days, the artists – 160 or more musicians and related crew – made the California Zephyr and the Texas Eagle their home, embarking on a six-city tour stretching from Oakland to New Orleans, or the “Big Easy.”

Spirited jam sessions comprise most of the film.  The gatherings, taking place throughout the trains’ cabins and club cars, are filmed with a hand-held camera, giving the scenes an intimacy which draws viewers in as much as the music does.  These performances are shot in vivid color, and are as  striking as the landscapes Malloy captures along the way.  From the lush mountains of Northern California bay area to the dry low deserts of Southwest Texas, Malloy’s lens captures it all.  In contrast, Malloy films many of the outdoor concerts in black and white, making the music the focus of viewers attention.

Big Easy Express draws viewers in by focusing on the passion the artists displays in their performances.  There is no question these musicians are devoted to the craft of making authentic, soulful music.  

Standout moments in Big Easy Express includes the Magenetic Zeros’ impressive rendition of popular song “Home,” Old Crow Medicine Show’s bluegrass nod “Wagon Wheel” and a three-band rendition of the Woody Guthrie classic “This Train Is Bound for Glory,” performed at the final show in New Orleans.

Big Easy Express screened at the Los Angeles Film Festival in the Summer Showcase. The film is available on iTunes Movies, and will be released on home video in late July with 25 minutes of additional concert footage, followed by theatrical and VOD distribution later in the fall.  For more information, visit the Big Easy Express website.

Big Easy Express (USA, 2012, 67 mins)

Directed By: Emmett Malloy