OLE’ OLE’ OLE’!: A TRIP ACROSS LATIN AMERICA (2016) *** ½
The Rolling Stones are for my money the greatest band of all time. Because they have been together for so long, their only real competition is themselves. Since there have been many terrific documentaries and concert films made about them over the years, this one (about their recent tour through Latin America) feels a bit slight in comparison. However, there are still enough interesting tidbits here that make it worth checking out.
If you’re watching the film to hear their music, you might be disappointed. Not many songs are played in their entirety, but we do get to see full versions of “Start Me Up”, “Out of Control”, and “Satisfaction”. The best musical moment finds Mick Jagger and Keith Richards sitting backstage and reminiscing about the evolution of “Honky Tonk Women” before doing an impromptu rendition of it. Just seeing the two of them together, alone and away from the spotlight and playing is quite a special moment.
I think the coolest thing about the film is the segment devoted to Argentina. Like many countries in South America, the government of Argentina cracked down on rock music in the ‘60s and ‘70s and banned it. Despite that, a bunch of rock fans made their own tribe (known as “Rolingas”), and modeled their life around the Stones. They tattooed themselves with the band's logo, wore their T-shirts, and played their music in rebellion to the government. If anything speaks to the band’s influence in that part of the world, it’s this segment.
There are also smaller glimpses of band’s impact on the region. We see a local samba group playing “Sympathy of the Devil” and a Mexican Mariachi band playing “Happy”. The scenes of the band running into cultural difference are amusing as well (like in Peru, where the local cuisine is guinea pigs). There are also the expected bits of the band being themselves. It’s funny seeing Keith running around the empty stadium using a magic stick to ward off an eminent rain shower. (It doesn’t work.)
Throughout all of this, the band’s management tries to organize their historical Cuban concert. The film deals with their team’s various setbacks as they try to grapple with the logistics of putting on the show and working out the timing (they have to reschedule when Obama announces his visit). That concert is a subject of another documentary, Havana Moon, which I hope to check out very soon.