Rating: 
Summary: Where is the rest of the concert?
Review: A good film about a sadly bad organized/guided concert, courtesy of Mr. Ricky and Co. One thing I can't understand about this sort of films about MUSIC festivals is that music sometimes is cut down to show the events that surround the concert. For instance Miles Davis appears just 2-3 minutes (!!!) with his 1970 line up; Jethro Tull is clearly edited; Emerson Lake and Palmer appear on the former Laser Disc edition just a couple of minutes, later the company added Rondo, but where is the rest... By the way once again the european DVD has more music than the USA one (where are Family and Taste second track).
Rating: 
Summary: Great music, great selection, but choppy presentation
Review: As a documentary, this dvd is excellent. The Isle of Wight Festival is important for several reasons, among which is that it was among the last performances of both Jim Morrison and Jimi Hendrix. Further, the festival was, like Woodstock and the Festival Train, an odd mix of success and failure. Financially, these were all a failure. In terms of demonstrating the ideals of the late '60s - that music and emotion could create something beautiful - these festivals were also (to varying degrees) a failure. Yet, the music was fantastic and the events became living things, as important in terms of history as in art. As this film shows, any attempt at orchestrating and scripting the event was thwarted by the "event" itself. We see people appropriating the stage, tearing down walls, dancing, etc. We see artists leave the stage in disgust and we see others plead with the audience. We see the behind-the scenes, the organizers frustrated with artists and with the crowd. Ultimately, we see resolution as a large number of individuals brought together finally learn to accept each other. This is a movie without the sugar-coating and it borders on shocking at times.
In terms of the selection of artists, there are some great performances here and no single artist is really spotlighted. I wish that there was additional footage, even as special features. Further, the transition between the performances and the crowd (something handled very well in Woodstock - though a different director) is sometimes a bit abrupt, giving the film a bit of a choppy feel.
There are (at present) two companion films available separately, presenting the complete performances of The Who and Jimi Hendrix. In these films, the director (Murray Lerner) likewise includes some behind-the-scenes footage of the organizers, providing some nice context, though the full meaning of these snippets is really gained after watching Message To Love. Thus, these companion films extend Message to Love. I would love to see more of these complete performances (Jethro Tull springs to mind, and I saw that a cd of their performance was recently released). Further, I would like to see a box set of the Isle of Wight material - Message To Love + the complete performance materials.
Anyway, despite a bit of choppiness, I recommend this disc. Mr. Lerner included a fine mix of major and minor (retrospectively speaking) artists and a good bit of context via the behind-the-scenes transitions. Whereas this disc doesn't have the smoothness of Woodstock or Monterey Pop, for example, the inclusion of overlooked artists and "the ugly side" perhaps make this a more truthful documentary. There are enough fine performances to please the music fan and enough context for the historian alike.
Rating:
Summary: Controversy? Yes... Music? Not enough
Review: As a person who loves the music of this era, I was really hoping to see the performers, especially considering that it was the last performance of both Jimi and Jim. Unfortunately, (for me, that is) this film placed so much focus on the controversy and ruckus, that it left little room for all of the music. What music there was, was often cut after half the song. This film didn't give me an overall sense of the entirety of the event. Performances were tailored to fit around the drama, and I couldn't figure out what was happening when. However, if you are looking to experience the mayhem of this historical event, I think this film will give you a good idea of what went down.
Rating:
Summary: Where is the DVD Booklet ?
Review: Dear friends, Amazing concert of our generation, I buy and watch this DVD , but when I want to learn more knowledge about ISLE OF WIGHT CONCERT, I Couldn't, Because ; THERES A NO BOOKLET IN THE DVD POCKET !. Ýs it a Fault of Product-Company ? ( if it is; They must be send a BOOKLET of this DVD to my adress ).....
Rating:
Summary: Generally satisfying film of classic 1970 rock festival
Review: Director Murray Lerner and his film crew were hired by the Isle of Wight Festival promoters to make a movie of the events and music that took place from August 26-31st 1970. Due to financial problems and lack of interest from the film distributors, the film footage sat unreleased for twenty-five years (although bits of Hendrix, The Who & Free's performances surfaced in other presentations). Before the 1995 movie was released I absolutely hungered to see anything of this footage. Admittedly, my anticipation for the film was incredible. Eventually I got my wish. Fortunately, I was generally satisfied with MESSAGE TO LOVE, although I did have reservations. First the good: I was able to see The Doors, Moody Blues, Jethro Tull, Joni Mitchell, Miles Davis, Free, Taste, etc. in their prime. These are classic performances, mostly well played. The scene of Kris Kristofferson getting booed off stage haunted me for weeks; I felt sorry for the guy. Too bad they didn't show his come-back performance a few days later, where he was better received. The dissapointments: I want more footage. A lot of the music performances are extremely edited-down. Donovan is only seen for like three seconds. John Sebastian's show stopping performance is poorly edited too as they come in for the ending of his song. Performances from Tony Joe White, Melanie, Cactus, Procol Harum weren't even included in favor of "Machine Gun" (Hendrix) "All Right Now" (Free) "Young Man Blues" (The Who) ...redundant footage, because they were all available in other presentations. Lastly, the film is generally downbeat, focusing in on the problems that plagued the festival. Actually, the violence and unpleasentness is overplayed. This was actually a good festival, with good bands and a lot of positive aspects. Too bad Lerner couldn't focus more on this. Nevertheless, it's still a fine film and I hope to see more footage released to the public.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't buy this video
Review: Don't waste your time with this video. The best performances were cut down to nothing. This DVD my be worth 5 bucks, but I wouldn't pay more than that for it. Save your money and buy another movie.
Rating:
Summary: Tantalising Glimpses of Greatness....
Review: Fascinating but frustrating, this movie does suffer a little from Lerner's preoccupations with the business side of the festival (lingering over shots of the promoters piling up pound notes and whining about being unable to pay creditors), the aggravation which built up between promoters and crowd (again over money) and the crowd itself. Most of this stuff is just plain depressing, and on first viewing seems annoyingly obtrusive - you just want to get onto the next snatch of music! Taken as a whole, though, it does help to set these amazing performances into the real context in which they were delivered, and ultimately the film is more rewarding if you can keep your finger off the fast-forward button and just experience the whole thing. Musical highlights abound: the Who at their incendiary best, Hendrix displaying a nonchalant brilliance which was his alone, Alvin Lee and Kieth Emerson whipping up respective storms with their crowd-pleasing techniques, Leonard Cohen by contrast the introspective poet of gloom (but still the crowd seem to hang onto every word), Joni Mitchell fighting back the tears and demanding some respect and singing like an angel, Jim Morrison being magnificent, Taste - I'd forgotten what a great blues band they were - Free, Moody Blues, Tull..all delivering the goods. In between you get bursts of aggression, frustration, downright unpleasantness and quite a few eccentric characters expressing their opinions on the events unfolding around them. One thing for sure, it'll never happen again. For all its shortcomings, this is a fascinating film and a great companion to Woodstock - the Movie.
Rating:
Summary: the last, the largest, it could be better
Review: For those of you who have seen the Woodstock movie, you loved it so much, you wanted to see what happened next, some new faces and not the least, Leonard Cohen, ELP first appearance, The Doors, it seems even better but the result is a bit dissapointing. The isle of Wight was more for the money than Woodstock. Some were kept out even if only one outta then of the crowd payed. We don't get the feeling that we're there with them as in Woodstock and the footage isn't as good but it is enjoyable, you can see some great performance, especially from Pete Townshend. If you don't have seen Woodstock, see this one first and then Woodstock, better keep the best for the end.
Rating:
Summary: misleading
Review: Great Movie, but one thing is dramatically wrong.
This was not Jim Morrison's last stage performance with the Doors. It was 12/12/70 in New Orleans. So for all of you who thought is was his last...sorry!
Rating:
Summary: Here's Why!!
Review: I could almost feel the corporate swine looking at the crowd and saying "What revenue potential"!! Highlights include Kris Kristoferson spooked by the crowd,("I think the're gonna shoot us!)and incendiary Townshend during "Naked Eye".Watch this video..You will have NO doubt about why ticket prices are $75 per seat today!
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