Gimme Shelter

PG

Released Dec 6, 1970

1h 30m

Documentary

List

94%

31 Reviews

Tomatometer

91%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

The landmark documentary about the tragically ill-fated Rolling Stones free concert at Altamont Speedway on December 6, 1969. Only four months earlier, Woodstock defined the Love Generation; now it lay in ruins on a desolate racetrack six miles outside of San Francisco.

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Critics Consensus

Equal parts essential and chilling, Gimme Shelter provides a spine-tingling look at how the Rolling Stones' music paralleled the end of the counterculture movement.

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Johnathon W

Classic rock documentary that marks the end of the 60's. What's interesting is that this was meant to the a straight forward coverage of the Rolling Stones's American tour only for the Maysles to capture the chaos at Altamont, including the moment a Hell's Angel stabs a man to death on screen. Brutal and honest, the best kind of documentaries.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/25/24

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Linda T

Excellent!!! Great acting. Made me cry

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/02/24

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Marc Z

This look at The Rolling Stones and the infamous free concerts at Altamonte is the basis for the amazingly well made musical documentary. This is one of the best ever made, and even better if you like the music of The Rolling Stones. It is a look at music, culture, the 1960's and a really tragic incident which marred this great event. This is well made and features tons of great behind the scenes footage. It is a concert and so much more.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

05/24/23

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William L

Four people died at Altamont Speedway in 1969 - two in a hit-and-run, one drowned after an LSD trip, and one stabbed in the confusion surrounding the event - each representative of the mishmash of countercultural subgroups that had developed (from your generic hippies to the Hell's Angels) and the general lack of identity that had invaded the movement as it simply got too large to stay cohesive. There was no longer a clear unifying force behind it all and as a result, some lashed out each other or simply found themselves spiraling out of control in self-destructive patterns. Jagger and the rest of the Stones move around the film as you would expect them to in their primes, in a trancelike daze from one gig to the next, enjoying the attention and the sex as they were heralded as the kings of rock and roll, right up until it all collapses in on itself like a black hole. The film leaves the group staring out at a crowd that they no longer understand, shaped by forces beyond their control, now intermittently violent and dangerous; their pleas with the crowd are fruitless, and they end up airlifted from the concert grounds. Pieces together fascinating bits of documentary footage to establish the freewheeling nature of the one of the greatest bands in the world, then using their own disillusionment to discuss the end of a cultural era - the bell that signaled the slow decline of the counterculture movement. One of the great concert documentaries. (4/5)

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

05/10/21

Full Review

andres s

Jeez man The Stones were electric! So much energy especially from Jagger. He really is a showman. So crazy and hilarious seeing them so young and stoned. Very interesting to watch all the archival footage that was filmed during their rise to stardom and also the days leading up to the Altamont concert. So insane seeing all the planning and hype that went in to the concert. I mean this was like the biggest event of the century and even more so since it was free. Amazing seeing how deeply influenced they were by American blues. They would even go to hillbilly country parts of America like Alabama to record some of their earlier songs. So crazy seeing all the different kinds of people that showed up to the concert and seeing all the absolute wonderfully fucking beautiful chaos that was happening. The Hell's Angels definitely had an intimidating and menacing presence being there. Hell hath come on two wheels. I mean they were basically being bullies in a sense. The vibes were all off, all over the place with them being there. I feel like they should have hired personal guards that they knew instead of the Hell's Angels. I feel like the Angels were really quick to fly off the handle whenever someone acted up, always leading to punches and a scuffle. I do have to commend them though for stopping that black guy with the gun who could have potentially opened fire on the band, harming innocents in the process. The planning of everything seemed very spontaneous and haphazard. Really fucked up and sad to see how the mood of the whole event changes as soon as the Angels started beating on people. This was supposed to be the biggest event of the year that would bring people together one last time before the beginning of a new decade. What should of been a night filled with peace, love and rock & roll turned into a night of pandemonium and violence. Marking the beginning of the end of what once was the year of peace & love and bringing an end to the counterculture movement. The raw footage is incredible to watch. Especially during the last half of the documentary, it's impossible to look away as one gets entranced with the whole experience that's going on during the event. One of the rawest and honest music documentaries that exists. Very impactful and hard-hitting.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Dated by today's standard: I had to explain to my kids and their friends the tape editing machine as cgi didn't exist. Watched again after a 35 year hiatus with my daughter whom said "OMG what are they all on?" I said "those asses are now the Democratic Party running the west coast of America." A rock documentary with substance. I cannot fathom why anybody would hire thoe Hell's Angels for beer. Who was thinking or what were they on? It is a look on how Altmont came into being and along with Helter Skelter of Manson this became the dark post mortem being of the 60's. (West Coast) The Miracle Mets (will They ever win again after86), Man on the Moon, Woodstock are the light: (East Coast)

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/27/23

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Albert Maysles

Director

David Maysles

Director

Charlotte Zwerin

Director

Mick Jagger

The Rolling Stones

Keith Richards

The Rolling Stones

Mick Taylor

The Rolling Stones

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Show More Cast & Crew

100%

92%

Woodstock

75%

87%

The Song Remains the Same

60%

76%

Janis

100%

97%

The Sorrow and the Pity

100%

88%

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Margaret Hinxman

Daily Telegraph (UK)

The documentary filmmakers, the Maysles brothers, have recorded the events prior to, during and after the festival with a chilling sense of drama.

Mar 11, 2020

Full Review

Howard Smith

Village Voice

It's knowing about the killing, and waiting for it to happen on the screen that gives the film its energy and thrust.

Jan 18, 2013

Full Review

Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: A

Sep 7, 2011

Full Review

Gordon Young

Fresno Bee

If any lesson is to be learned from this film it is that rock festivals require considerable planning. They can be a celebration of life, but that requires some Establishment cooperation... In any event, Jagger is great.

Nov 10, 2023

Full Review

Dan Lybarger

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Because of the warped chronology, Gimme Shelter makes for absorbing viewing. It's also a chilling lesson in humility.

Nov 20, 2021

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Paul Schrader

Cinema

In the end, Gimme Shelter remains a film of shallow intentions; its aesthetics seem those of possibility and opportunism rather than necessity and moral commitment.

Jun 30, 2020

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Synopsis

The landmark documentary about the tragically ill-fated Rolling Stones free concert at Altamont Speedway on December 6, 1969. Only four months earlier, Woodstock defined the Love Generation; now it lay in ruins on a desolate racetrack six miles outside of San Francisco.

Director: Albert Maysles, David Maysles, Charlotte Zwerin
Distributor: Criterion Collection, Kit Parker Films Inc
Production Co: Maysles Films
Rating: PG
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 6, 1970, Wide
Rerelease Date (Theaters): Aug 11, 2000
Release Date (Streaming): May 22, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $252.6K
Runtime: 1h 30m

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