Stop Making Sense brings the "Big Suit"-era Talking Heads to Deckchair Cinema, July 11
“Burning Down the House”, “Psycho Killer”, and more hits get iconic performances in recently remastered film at The Polygon Gallery
Stop Making Sense.
The Polygon Gallery screens Stop Making Sense on Cates Deck on July 11 at 9:15 pm, as part of the Deckchair Cinema series
HERE’S A PRETTY much perfect way to spend a retro-’80s summer night by the North Shore waterfront.
The Polygon Gallery’s outdoor Deckchair Cinema is screening the Talking Heads’ iconic Stop Making Sense on July 11—an apt setting for the ultimate art-rock concert film. (The screening follows directly after the opening of the new exhibit Anti-Icon: Apokalypsis inside the Lonsdale Quay landmark.)
Director Jonathan Demme shot it over three nights at the Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles, back when the legendary band was promoting Speaking in Tongues. And it’s jampacked with moments of exuberant joy that feel straight out of another era.
Settle in for hyperenergized performances of hits like “Burning Down the House” and “Psycho Killer”, with a magnetic David Byrne jerking and bobbing at the mike. You can argue with your friends afterward about which number is best; we’re on team “Girlfriend Is Better”, when Byrne pulls out the “Big Suit” with its monster-sized shoulder pads and performs his wiggly freakout dance to Tina Weymouth’s driving bass and Bernie Worrell’s screaming synthesizer.
Other standout moments include a pas de deux in “Home Sweet Home” with a floor lamp, and a full-on gospel-ized “Take Me to the River” with Byrne in oversized dad pants—each and every song choreographed into its own weird and atmospherically lit vignette.
Note that Stop Making Sense was lovingly remastered and restored for its 40th anniversary last year. Just try to stay seated in that deck chair. 
Related Articles
