STOP MAKING SENSE is hands down the single best document of a live performance by any band. From its creative staging to the song selection it manages to capture the joy and energy of a concert.
The Talking Heads were just breaking through to the mainstream at this point and their highly rhythmic music was hitting the charts at the time this was released and the public for once seemed to be tuned to more alternative styles of music. That the Heads managed to not pander to the commercial tread is admirable and the film is filled a number of deeper cuts from their discography.
Byrne stands out strongly as the frontman going from quirky loner to evangelical preacher over the course of the film. He commands the stage so strongly that the viewer is unable to take their eyes from him. The energy he displays is infectious and he almost seems superhuman.
This is the one concert film that I could watch endlessly and I would say that their performance of "Life During Wartime" with the entire band running in place throughout the duration is one of the most captivating moments of cinema I have every seen.
I love this film mightily.