For all of the mystery and legal controversy surrounding Robert Frank's unstructured Cinéma vérité Rolling Stones documentary (filmed during their 1972 "Exile on Main Street" tour) the proof in the pudding is fairly prosaic.
Although the film was originally commissioned by the Stones, the band took issue with its less than flattering image of its backstage and hotel room shenanigans that famously included drug use and sex.
A court ruling decreed that the film could only be shown with Robert Frank present, although it is–at the time of this writing–available online. "Cocksucker Blues" takes its intentionally profane title from the title of a final song that Mick Jagger wrote to fulfill the band's contract to Decca Records. Sadly, the nasty little ditty appears nowhere in the movie.
The film's highlight occurs during a live performance of "Satisfaction," with Stevie Wonder contributing to a magnificent moment of concert inspiration. Another bit of charming cool occurs with a shirtless Keith Richards playing boogie woogie on a hotel room piano. Frank left various cameras around for anyone to pick up and film whatever they wanted, and the result is a sloppy time capsule of early '70s rock 'n' roll excess. "Cocksucker Blues" is interesting from a time capsule point of view, but doesn't hold up as much of a movie.
Not Rated. 93 mins.
