by Everett Jensen

Created on: May 20, 2008   Last Updated: May 21, 2008

Young @ Heart
directed by Stephen Walker
starring Bob Cilman, the Young @ Heart chorus

Fred Knittle is my new hero. The retired superstar for the Young @ Heart chorus, a group of folks whose average age is eighty, Fred is brought back for one final performance. He's a totemic presence, rife with a deeply felt appreciation for his opportunity to return to the stage after a prolonged hiatus which he took for health reasons. Just watching him maneuver himself and his oxygen tank throughout the rehearsal space and later on stage is a quiet revelation. As he waits patiently for the music to Coldplay's "Fix You" to start up, the anticipation nearly appears to be too much. We have already been introduced to Fred's glorious baritone when he sings "Ghostriders in the Sky" for Walker and his crew. The subtext here is terribly sad and the lyrics just happen to coincide with what has transpired barely twenty-four hours previous. One of the group has suddenly passed away (the second such death since rehearsals began) leaving a massive void in everyone's hearts. Fred then comes through with an impossibly poignant reading of the song that he delivers with all the solemnity and craftsmanship one could ever possibly hope for. His voice is perfectly suited to gospel music and one gets the impression Fred knows his bible.

This is a film that follows the exploits of 20ish individuals who make up the Young @ Heart chorus based in Massachusetts. The group has existed since the early 1980's when taskmaster Bob Cilman first hit on the idea. Today it tours the world and spreads its particular brand of joy to audiences everywhere. This is an intriguing case study that examines the creative process in all its ugly, exasperating glory. One of the singers just can't seem to figure out how to say two lines of James Brown's "I Feel Good". The entire group suffers through Allen Touissaint's "Yes We Can Can" replete with its 72 uses of the word "can". Then there is Sonic Youth's "Schizophrenia" which is almost universally loathed and stretches the patience of everyone involved, especially Cilman.

At first this seems like merely a cute expose on those darling little aged folks who say the darndest things. Gradually, it becomes less of a cloying, manipulative freak show and more of a legitimate testament to possibilities and perseverance. These are not the kinds of people who give up just because something seems impossible. There is a strong current of hope running through the whole thing because

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