Eric Clapton: Across 24 Nights

Directed by David Barnard, Eric Clapton: Across 24 Nights documents the legendary musician’s 24-show run at London’s Royal Albert Hall in 1990 and 1991 – as Barnard cherry-picks individual performances that mostly pack an impressively compelling punch. And while the non-HD presentation is initially a distraction and turn-off (ie the limitations of the early ’90s shot-on-tape format are often painfully apparent), Eric Clapton: Across 24 Nights‘ emphasis on Clapton and company’s first-class work ensures that it quickly becomes easy enough to overlook the less-than-cinematic visuals. Clapton himself remains a sterling, engaging presence throughout the picture’s 115 minutes, and yet it’s equally clear that the efforts of such notable musicians as Buddy Guy, Phil Collins, and Jimmie Vaughan enhance the perpetually (and pervasively) watchable atmosphere. (Albert Collins’ terrific, all-too-brief appearance remains a highlight within the proceedings, ultimately.) The almost two-hour running time does pave the way for a somewhat exhausting final stretch, however, but it’s difficult, in the end, not to get a kick out of the lively performances of such classic Clapton tunes as “Cocaine” and “I Shot the Sheriff” – which does, in the final analysis, cement Eric Clapton: Across 24 Nights‘ place as a top-notch concert film.

*** out of ****