Shut Up and Sing

R

Released Oct 27, 2006

1h 39m

Documentary

List

89%

Tomatometer

126 Reviews

86%

Audience Score

5,000+ Ratings

Filmmakers Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck examine the consequences of an anti-Bush comment. In 2003 Natalie Maines, singer for the Dixie Chicks, makes a negative comment about President George W. Bush. Controversy follows the group as fans and Republicans show their rage about the remark.

Read More

Read Less

Watch on Fandango at Home

Buy Now

Fandango at Home

Prime Video

Rent Shut Up and Sing on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video.

Critics Consensus

Though ostensibly an intimate look at the Dixie Chicks after their 2003 anti-Bush remark, the film achieves broader relevance by exploring how media, politics, and celebrities intertwine.

Read Critics Reviews

David Ansen

Newsweek

Masterfully edited, the film combines footage the band made for its Web site and footage shot by Kopple and Peck over the last two years. The filmmakers are clearly in awe of the Chicks' fighting spirit.

Feb 6, 2018

Full Review

Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Shut Up and Sing tells the story of three young women whose belief in America is bred in the bone, and it shames their critics.

Rated: 3.5/4

Oct 19, 2007

Full Review

Anthony Quinn

Independent (UK)

I came round to them by the end, but it's not a great introduction.

Rated: 3/5

Jun 29, 2007

Full Review

Marya E. Gates

Cool People Have Feelings, Too. (Substack)

Offers a roadmap to where this country is now in terms of its political divide and the way that pop culture and media have become both weaponized and polarized.

Feb 13, 2024

Full Review

David Walsh

World Socialist Web Site

The result is somewhat superficial. Shut Up and Sing strikes only a glancing blow, when it could have done more.

Feb 14, 2021

Full Review

Sarah Manvel

Cinemattraction

As a documentary that magnificently demonstrates how actions have unintended consequences and how politics impact our personal choices.

Aug 7, 2018

Full Review

Read all reviews

StephenPaul C

The greatest 01 hour: and 39 minutes of real footage featuring Dixie Chicks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And including George Walker Bush!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/26/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Funny how history repeats itself. Some of the most talented women. Guitar, accordion, mandolin, fiddle and those vocals! Shit, Zeppelin only had a small margin more than them. Crazy how a bandwagon ruined a bunch of great artists. Resorting to "shut up and sing or your life will be over". Don't we all have the right to freedom of speech? P.s, Bush was an ass. Sad it took a documentary and death threats to realize that. Also, I never got why people went to the concerts at all with those hate signs. Probably just to feel better for liking an awesome group. Stop the hate!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

Full Review

Josh G

An exceptional documentary with great music.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/22/19

Full Review

Audience Member

A documentary about the time America stopped being "the land of the free". The fact that people could be so hateful and promote war is disgusting.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/25/23

Full Review

Audience Member

You may recall the trouble the Dixie Chicks got themselves into, at the very beginnings of the Iraq war, when they denounced the war and proclaimed that they were embarrassed George Bush came from their home state of Texas. From the demonstrations, to the boycotts, to the death threats, and even to hearings before congress, through 3 years of personal, political, and musical transformation that the Dixie Chicks went through, it was all captured on film. While Shut Up & Sing is not a perfect documentary, it is moving and retrospective, and is worth a revisit back to 2003, back to when America went to into a war that the majority of Americans wanted at the time, and which we now, as a country, look back on with regrets. From it's beginning, there they were, the Dixie Chicks, speaking out, practicing their right of free speech, and paying the price because of it. This documentary leaves you with profound respect for these amazingly talented artists.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/13/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Really love this documentary

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Post a rating

Barbara Kopple

Director

Cecilia Peck

Director

David Cassidy

Producer

Barbara Kopple

Producer

Cecilia Peck

Producer

Claude Davies

Co-Producer

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

85%

67%

The Yes Men

67%

50%

Protocols of Zion

66%

84%

Screamers

82%

70%

Fahrenheit 9/11

80%

77%

Chicago 10

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

RTIndie: Can Indie Studios Survive Without Big Studio Backing?

Box Office Guru Preview: Saw III Brings The Pain

Critical Consensus: "Fire" Blazes; "Scissors" Isn’t Sharp Enough; "Saw III" Not Screened: Guess The Tomatometer!

View more photos

Synopsis

Filmmakers Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck examine the consequences of an anti-Bush comment. In 2003 Natalie Maines, singer for the Dixie Chicks, makes a negative comment about President George W. Bush. Controversy follows the group as fans and Republicans show their rage about the remark.

Director: Barbara Kopple, Cecilia Peck
Producer: David Cassidy, Barbara Kopple, Cecilia Peck
Distributor: Weinstein Co.
Production Co: Cabin Creek
Rating: R (Language)
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 27, 2006, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 10, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.2M
Runtime: 1h 39m

Most Popular at Home Now