The True Story of Frank Zappa's 200 Motels

Jan 1, 1988

0h 59m

★ 7.5

Overview

A one-hour documentary on the making of Frank Zappa's bizarre 1971 comic musical. Vintage private footage from Frank's personal archives plus behind-the-scenes of the actual shooting and recording. With Ringo Starr, Theodore Bikel, Keith Moon and such songs as "Sleeping in a Jar," and "Strictly Genteel." The inside history of the first feature-length film to be shot on video in 6 days.

Genres

Documentary

Comedy

Music

The True Story of Frank Zappa's 200 Motels Trailers

No Trailers found.

Cast

Self

Frank Zappa

Self

Tony Palmer

Self (archive footage)

Phyllis Smith Altenhaus

Self (archive footage)

Dick Barber

Self

Theodore Bikel

Self

Jimmy Carl Black

Self

Peter Bos

Self (archive footage)

Napoleon Murphy Brock

Self

Phyllis Bryn-Julson

Self

Warren Cuccurullo

Self (archive footage)

Pamela Des Barres

Self

George Duke

A day in the city of Berlin, which experienced an industrial boom in the 1920s, and still provides an insight into the living and working conditions at that time. Germany had just recovered a little from the worst consequences of the First World War, the great economic crisis was still a few years away and Hitler was not yet an issue at the time.

6.7

Classic Albums: Carly Simon - No Secrets

May 5, 2017

Carly Simon is one of the most influential singer-songwriters of her generation. The classic album that made her a global star was No Secrets, which included the enigmatic song You're So Vain. The album spent five weeks at number one in the US chart.

8.1

Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii

Oct 25, 1972

British progressive rock band Pink Floyd perform at the ancient Roman Amphitheater in the ruins of Pompeii, Italy in 1971. Although the band perform a typical live set from the era, there is no audience beyond the basic film crew.

5.0

Puppets & Demons

Apr 8, 1997

An anthology of surreal films by Patrick McGuinn featuring Vincent, a puppet who is obsessed with Twinkies and pasta.

6.2

Panta Rhei

Mar 8, 1952

In 1952, Haanstra made Panta Rhei , another view of Holland through the eyes of a painter and filmmaker. Its poetic images of water, skies and clouds reflect Haanstra's own moods.

5.0

Cinnamon

Jan 20, 2006

An experimental film that lifts the veil on the world of African American drag racing.

7.8

Frank Zappa – Summer '82: When Zappa Came to Sicily

Oct 5, 2014

In the feature documentary, Summer 82 – When Zappa Came to Sicily, filmmaker and Zappa fan Salvo Cuccia tells the behind-the-scenes story of Frank Zappa's star-crossed concert in Palermo, Sicily, the wrap-up to a European tour that ended in public disturbances and police intervention. Cuccia had a ticket to the concert but never made it. Thirty years later, collaborating with Zappa's family, he re-creates the events through a combination of rare concert and backstage footage; photographs; anecdotes from family, band members, and concertgoers; and insights from Zappa biographer and friend Massimo Bassoli. The story is also a personal one, as Cuccia interweaves the story of Zappa's trip to Sicily with his own memories from that summer.

7.4

Classic Albums: Pink Floyd - The Making of The Dark Side of the Moon

Jun 1, 2003

Released to coincide with the 30th anniversary of this classic album, learn how Pink Floyd assembled "Dark Side of the Moon" with the aid of original engineer Alan Parsons. All four band members--Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Richard Wright--are interviewed at length, giving valuable insights into the recording process. The themes of the album are discussed at length, and the band take you back to the original multi track tapes to illustrate how they pieced together the songs. With individual performances of certain tracks from Roger, David, and Richard included, this is an essential purchase for any Pink Floyd fans, and a fascinating artefact for rock historians everywhere.

0.0

Man Ray: Prophet of the Avant-Garde

Apr 9, 1997

Man Ray, the master of experimental and fashion photography was also a painter, a filmmaker, a poet, an essayist, a philosopher, and a leader of American modernism. Known for documenting the cultural elite living in France, Man Ray spent much of his time fighting the formal constraints of the visual arts. Ray’s life and art were always provocative, engaging, and challenging.

0.0

Drama in the Futurists' Cabaret No. 13

Jan 2, 1914

No overview available.

10.0

Plague Mass

Apr 1, 1991

A conceptual live concert by Diamanda Galás, "Plague Mass" continues the themes of the suffering and misery of the infected found in her "Masque of the Red Death" trilogy.

4.7

Lonesome Cowboys

Nov 1, 1968

Five lonesome cowboys get all hot and bothered at home on the range after confronting Ramona Alvarez and her nurse.

8.0

The Yellow Shark

Sep 17, 1992

This live recording was culled from seven September 1992 concerts given in Vienna, Berlin, and Frankfurt by the Ensemble Modern, a Frankfurt-based chamber orchestra that performs only contemporary music. Composed and conducted by Frank Zappa.

0.0

Lake

Dec 30, 2019

Lake gazes down at a still body of water from a birds-eye view, while a group of artists peacefully float in and out of the frame or work to stay at the surface. As they glide farther away and draw closer together, they reach out in collective queer and desirous exchanges — holding hands, drifting over and under their neighbors, making space, taking care of each other with a casual, gentle intimacy while they come together as individual parts of a whole. The video reflects on notions of togetherness and feminist theorist Silvia Federici’s call to “reconnect what capitalism has divided: our relation with nature, with others, and our bodies.”

7.0

Drowning by Numbers

Sep 10, 1988

Cissie Colpitts drowns her cheating husband and, in the ensuing cover-up, enlists the help of lonely coroner Henry Madgett, an old friend with a longstanding weakness for her charms. But when Cissie's daughter and granddaughter—both also named Cissie Colpitts—decide to resort to the same methods for solving conflicts with their own frustrating husbands, the women and their repeated appeals for help begin to wear on Madgett's conscience.

5.2

200 Motels

Nov 10, 1971

"Touring makes you crazy," Frank Zappa says, explaining that the idea for this film came to him while the Mothers of Invention were touring. The story, interspersed with performances by the Mothers and the Royal Symphony Orchestra, is a tale of life on the road. The band members' main concerns are the search for groupies and the desire to get paid.

4.7

The Howl

May 1, 1970

A young bride escapes her wedding ceremony with a stranger and together they set off on an epic journey though increasingly bizarre lands. They encounter talking animals and mournful exhibitionists, converse with a discoursing rock, journey through a surrealist's psychedelic hotel, instigate a prison riot, escape from naked cannibals living in a tree and battle a wind-up midget dictator!

6.7

Totally F***ed Up

Aug 19, 1994

Gay, alienated Los Angeles teens have a hard time as their parents kick them out of their homes, they don’t have money, their lovers cheat, and they are harassed by gay-bashers.

5.3

The Song of Italy

Dec 31, 1967

Filmed during Jonas Mekas’s travels through Italy in 1967, this short captures scenes from the country’s cities and countryside. The footage was later included in his 2003 compilation film Travel Songs (1967–1981).

7.0

Rush: Cinema Strangiato - R40+ Director's Cut

Sep 9, 2021

Following the success of Rush: Cinema Strangiato - Director's Cut in movie theaters worldwide, Anthem Entertainment and Trafalgar Releasing give Rush fans around the world the opportunity to experience it again – this time from the comfort of home. In celebration 40 years of Moving Pictures, this global streaming release features the “director’s cut” of 2019's R40+ event that was just shown in cinemas, giving audiences a special look into R40 LIVE, with a setlist including this year’s new additions of bonus tracks "One Little Victory" and “Red Barchetta” as well as "Cygnus X-1 / “The Story So Far” featuring Neil's final recorded drum solo masterpiece.