Stop Making Sense

"Why stop making sense? Why a movie? Why a big suit? Where do the odd movements come from? What will the band do next?"

1984 1h 28m EN

🙌

8.4

BANGER

★8.4TMDB · 396

DocumentaryMusic

Synopsis

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A concert film documenting Talking Heads at the height of their popularity, on tour for their 1983 album "Speaking in Tongues." The band takes the stage one by one and is joined by a cadre of guest musicians for a career-spanning and cinematic performance that features creative choreography and visuals.

“Why stop making sense? Why a movie? Why a big suit? Where do the odd movements come from? What will the band do next?”

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Cast

David Byrne
Self - Vocals, Guitar
Chris Frantz
Self - Drums, Vocals
Jerry Harrison
Self - Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals
Tina Weymouth
Self - Bass, Percussion, Vocals
Ednah Holt
Self - Backing Vocals
Lynn Mabry
Self - Backing Vocals
Steven Scales
Self - Percussion
Alex Weir
Self - Guitar, Vocals

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jonathan Demme
Writers: Jonathan Demme
Languages: English, French
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

88 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $1.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Grossed $12M — a 10.4× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

42 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, French.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Jonathan Demme, shot by Jordan Cronenweth. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Jerry Harrison. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Lisa Day shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jonathan Demme directs. Jordan Cronenweth behind the camera. Jerry Harrison scores. Lisa Day cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English, French.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

188 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
2Shot for just $1.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
3Grossed $12M — a 10.4× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.
442 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
5Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, French.
6Directed by Jonathan Demme, shot by Jordan Cronenweth. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Original score by Jerry Harrison. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
8Editor Lisa Day shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
9David Byrne and Chris Frantz and Jerry Harrison carry the top of the cast.
10Marketing tagline: "Why stop making sense? Why a movie? Why a big suit? Where do the odd movements come from? What will the band do next?".
11IMDB entry: tt0088178 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
12Classified under 8 themes, including "concert", "rock 'n' roll", "rock band", "concert film".

The technical file

Cinematography: Jordan Cronenweth
Original score: Jerry Harrison
Editing: Lisa Day
Runtime: 88 min · 1h 28m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $1,200,000
Box office: $12,471,520
Return: 1039% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: Stop Making Sense (1984)

Awards

National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Non-Fiction Film

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Jonathan Demme

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-10-08
★ 7/10
I'm not sure Jonathan Demme really had too much to do here as David Byrne and "Talking Heads" present us with a belter of a creative toe-tapper. It's a film of their concert - constructed from performances over three nights in a small Hollywood theatre, and that setting lends itself excellently to their showcase. The depth and height of the stage allows the band to arrive on set song by song, and for the camera work to get down and dirty with the band members amidst the most sparing of sets as they churn out some of the repertoire in an inimitable style that cleverly marries the intense with the entertaining, the comedic and the slightly fantastic. The audio is of an astonishingly strong quality, and the closeness and intensity of the photography makes the film really quite enthralling to watch. I am not the biggest fan of this band, but this film is really good and well worth a cinema watch - it only for that sound.
James2023-10-20
★ 7/10
I did write an artistically brilliant rendition of my thoughts on this movie but instead I’m going to give you this: I can't seem to face up to the facts I'm tense and nervous and I can't relax I can't sleep 'cause my bed's on fire Don't touch me, I'm a real live wire Psycho Killer Qu'est-ce que c'est? Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh-oh-oh Psycho Killer Qu'est-ce que c'est? Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh, oh, oh, oh Ay-ya-ya-ya-ya-ya, ooh You start a conversation, you can't even finish it You're talking a lot, but you're not saying anything When I have nothing to say, my lips are sealed Say something once, why say it again? Psycho Killer Qu'est-ce que c'est? Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh-oh-oh Psycho Killer Qu'est-ce que c'est? Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh, oh, oh, oh Ay-ya-ya-ya-ya-ya Ce que j'ai fait, ce soir-là Ce qu'elle a dit, ce soir-là Réalisant mon espoir Je me lance vers la gloire, okay Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah We are vain and we are blind I hate people when they're not polite Psycho Killer Qu'est-ce que c'est? Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh-oh-oh Psycho Killer Qu'est-ce que c'est? Fa-fa-fa-fa, fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa, better Run, run, run, run, run, run, run away, oh, oh, oh, oh Ai-ya-ya-ya-ya-ya, ooh
LM10102026-05-07
★ 9/10
went into the movie without even knowing who Talking Heads were except that they were quite popular back in their days, and i will have to say that i really enjoyed it