Blue Note - A Story of Modern Jazz

"It must schwing!"

1997 1h 53m EN

👍

7.2

SOLID

★7.2TMDB · 8

DocumentaryMusic

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

"It must schwing!" was the motto of Alfred Lion and Francis Wolff, two German Jewish immigrants who in 1939 set up Blue Note Records, the jazz label that was home to such greats as Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, Thelonious Monk, Art Blakey, Dexter Gordon and Sonny Rollins. Blue Note, the most successful movie ever made about jazz, is a testimony to the passion and vision of these two men and certainly swings like the propulsive sounds that made their label so famous.

“It must schwing!”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Cast

Freddie Hubbard
Self
Gil Mellé
Self
Herbie Hancock
Self
Horace Silver
Self
Carlos Santana
Self
Johnny Griffin
Self
Bertrand Tavernier
Self
Ron Carter
Self

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Julian Benedikt
Writers: Andreas Morell
Languages: German, French, English

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

ERA

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: German, French, English.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Julian Benedikt, shot by William Rexer. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Freddie Hubbard and Gil Mellé and Herbie Hancock carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "It must schwing!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0127466 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 8 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Julian Benedikt directs. William Rexer behind the camera. Andrew Hulme cuts. Dialogue in German, French, English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

129 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Dialogue crosses 3 languages: German, French, English.
3Directed by Julian Benedikt, shot by William Rexer. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Editor Andrew Hulme shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Freddie Hubbard and Gil Mellé and Herbie Hancock carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "It must schwing!".
7IMDB entry: tt0127466 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 8 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.