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Bob Balaban, Christopher Guest, Catherine O'Hara, Eugene Levy, Michael McKean ... see more see more... , Jane Lynch , John Michael Higgins , Parker Posey , Harry Shearer , Fred Willard , Ed Begley Jr , Paul Dooley , Jennifer Coolidge , Michael Hitchcock , Don Lake , Larry Miller , Deborah Theaker , Christopher Moynihan , Paul Benedict , Jim Piddock , Freda Foh Shen , Laura Harris , Linda Kash , David Blasucci , William S. Nunziata

The writing and directing team who created Waiting for Guffman and Best in Show turn their satiric eye toward the world of folk music in this sly mockumentary. Irving Steinbloom was one of the great b... read more read more...ehind-the-scenes figures of the folk music boom of the late '50s and early '60s, and helped to nurture the careers of three of the best known acts of the era. The Folksmen -- Mark Shubb (Harry Shearer), Alan Barrows (Christopher Guest), and Jerry Palter (Michael McKean) -- were an earnest folk trio who sang of America's noble past and the challenges of the future; they split up in the early '70s after a failed attempt to go electric. Mitch & Mickey were a duo in both music and life, comprised of Mitch Cohen (Eugene Levy) and Mickey Devlin (Catherine O'Hara). They sang soulful songs of love until the collapse of their relationship sent Mitch into a deep and incapacitating depression. And The Main Street Singers were a nine-piece vocal group -- a "neuftet," as they prefer it -- who offered energetic good-time music, cranking out nearly 30 albums in the course of a decade; their current incarnation, The New Main Street Singers (played by Jane Lynch, Parker Posey, John Michael Higgins, David Alan Blasucci, Steve Pandis, Christopher Moynihan, Paul Dooley and Patrick Sauber) is still on the road. When it is announced that the legendary Irving Steinbloom has died (the character never appears in the film), his son Jonathan (Bob Balaban) decides that the best way to memorialize his father is through music, and with the help of Mike LaFontaine (Fred Willard) of Hi-Class Management, they set out to bring The Folksmen, Mitch & Mickey, and The New Main Street Singers back together for a special concert at New York's Town Hall. Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer -- who previously teamed up for This Is Spinal Tap -- not only perform together as The Folksmen in A Mighty Wind, but composed most of the songs performed onscreen. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Flixster Users

80% liked it

39,323 ratings

Critics

88% liked it

172 critics

PG-13, 1 hr. 31 min.

Directed by: Christopher Guest

Release Date: April 16, 2003

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DVD Release Date: September 23, 2003

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Flixster Reviews (2,040)

  • JonathanHutchings
    April 21, 2012
    JonathanHutchings
    Full confession alert: I'm not the biggest Christopher Guest fan; however, A Mighty Wind is maturely directed, heartfelt, and keenly observed. I never thought I would be genuinely touched by a Guest film, but that's why we watch movies, right?
  • FrizzDrop
    December 27, 2011
    FrizzDrop
    Whenever I want to watch something light and comedic I either watch a Woody Allen or one of Christopher Guests' mockumentaries. This film is lacking compared to the over the top ensemble Waiting for Guffman and the polarizing Best in Show, but what it doesn't hold in a secure and... read more structured plot it makes up for in heart and gumption. I agree that when it tries to be subtle it's not well understood and when it tries to be obvious it's a bit in your face, but overall I found this to still to have a quiet charm about it. Guest always satirizes the easy targets: dog shows, local theater, and retired rock bands. Anywhere where eccentric characters thrive he mines for the laughs, usually easy with his usual cast of characters. Guest always uses his old stand-bys of Eugene Levy (who co-writes the scripts with Guest), Catherine O'Hara, Harry Shearer, and Michael McKean. He also utilizes youthful character actors John Michael Higgins, Parker Posey, Jane Lynch (an unknown in both this and Best in Show), and Bob Balaban. Every one of these films works exactly the same: a group of characters with misshaped values work to find fame and love from the crowd, either don't succeed or thoroughly embarrass themselves, and we flash to a short amount of time later to see the depths to which they have fallen. Most of this film is solely the folk music, the characters playing their instruments, and the oncoming concert. Through the interviews we learn strange details about these people including the involvement in a cult, a past in pornography, homelessness, and transgendered choices. The sub-plot over Mitch and Mickey was probably one of the sweeter things I've seen in film in a long time. Really, a delightful ensemble.
  • TomBowler
    January 3, 2011
    TomBowler
    What it lacks in plot it makes up for in an abundance of laughs. Full review later.
  • flixsterman
    September 19, 2010
    flixsterman
    Kooky but lovable mockumentary. In the same vein as Best in Show and Waiting for Guffman. Definitely the lesser of the three.
  • SirPant
    April 13, 2010
    SirPant
    There is no denying that nobody (to date) does Mockumentary quite as well as Christopher Guest but A Mighty Wind suffers for the simple fact that when it's subtle, it's too subtle and when it's obvious, it's just a little too obvious. Good film and very funny, it just lacks that ... read morecertain edge. Great performances though!
  • Chiefilms
    January 16, 2010
    Chiefilms
    What is going on? I reviewed this already. Folk the world brilliance.
  • 366weirdmovies
    October 10, 2009
    366weirdmovies
    A mockumentary in which three retired folk groups, each with their own backstories, get together for a reunion concert to honor their dead producer. None of the satirical bite or outright hilarity of SPINAL TAP, but it succeeds with involving characterizations (especially by a c... read morerazy-eyed Eugene Levy, who has been spending his post-stardom days in mental hospitals), and by being remarkably sweet towards its subjects without ever becoming cloying.
  • kenstachnik
    December 25, 2008
    kenstachnik
    I HATE folk music and I can't stand this movie as a result
  • FilmFanatik
    November 9, 2008
    FilmFanatik
    Lovely music and a funny mockumentary. I enjoyed it.
  • liquidchick76
    March 21, 2008
    liquidchick76
    Christopher Guest and his fellows are brilliant.

View All A Mighty Wind Reviews

Critic Reviews

Andrew Sarris
May 16, 2003
Andrew Sarris, New York Observer

There is no shortage of performers with comic skills in A Mighty Wind. What's lacking instead is a visible premise for the satire and ridicule. Full Review

Joe Baltake
May 9, 2003
Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee

Most of this film feels as if we've seen it before, and that's because we have. But this cast is marvelous to be around, as always. Full Review

Bruce Westbrook
May 9, 2003
Bruce Westbrook, Houston Chronicle

You don't leave A Mighty Wind laughing so much as humming. Its dialogue may be improvised, but its music is well rehearsed. Full Review

Tom Long
May 9, 2003
Tom Long, Detroit News

While Guest never forgets to laugh, he never forgets to love either, embracing the very subject he is simultaneously throttling.

Terry Lawson
May 9, 2003
Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press

A hoot. Full Review

Bill Muller
May 8, 2003
Bill Muller, Arizona Republic

A rollicking, tongue-in-cheek sendup.

Roger Moore
May 8, 2003
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

The most mature, heartfelt and keenly observed film of Team Guffman.

Richard Roeper
April 21, 2003
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper

[T]he most heartwarming spoof ever made. Full Review

Peter Rainer
April 20, 2003
Peter Rainer, New York Magazine

It's just about as terrific as Guest's previous two wingdings, Waiting for Guffman and Best in Show. Full Review

Stephen Whitty
April 18, 2003
Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger

Perhaps, after Best of Show and the terrific Waiting for Guffman this is a bit of a letdown. But it's still nice to leave a theater with a smile these days -- even though it would be even nicer to lea... Full Review

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A Mighty Wind Trivia

  • Parker Posey, Eugene Levy, and Catherine O'Hara starred in which 2003 folk music mockumentary?  Answer »
  • This mockumentary comedy in the vein of its creator's previous works follows folk singers trying to put on a show in rememberance for a man's father who has passed on.  Answer »
  • What did these movies have in common?: The Last Polka, This is Spinal Tap, A Mighty Wind, and For Your Consideration.  Answer »
  • Which actor played Mitch in the 2006 "mocumentary", "A Mighty Wind"?  Answer »
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