“This stuff is junk, what we’re doing,” Bill Murray deadpans in the middle of “New Worlds: The Cradle of Civilization.” The live audience onscreen—a strange sight after a year and a half of social distancing and no live performances—laughs. Murray hams it up: “Is it too late to get some moussaka?” Then he smiles knowingly and nods. “Trust me when I say that the worst is over,” he says.
READ MORE: Cannes Film Festival 2021 Preview: 25 Films To Watch
“Junk” may not be the right word, but “New Worlds: The Cradle of Civilization” is definitely a singular viewing experience. Directed by (or shot and captured by?) Andrew J. Muscato, the film is part classical music performance, part literature reading, the televised special filmed at the Athenaeum was certainly unconventional fare for audiences on the Croisette, accustomed to the high-concept arthouse filmmaking that usually graces the screens of the Palais. “New Worlds” is a high-minded artistic performance intended for the cultural elite, replete with readings of Ernest Hemingway and James Fenimore Cooper set to performances of Schubert. Still, thanks to Murray as its charismatic host, it’s also looser and more casual than a Philharmonic concert. The experience of watching the premiere was bizarre on many levels. It seems like the kind of televised variety special you’d casually put on in the background as you chopped vegetables in the isolation of your own home. But at Cannes, theatergoers watched it together in the presence of Murray, Jan Vogler, and the musicians themselves, unsure of whether to clap in real time between performances.
Still, the event, which concluded with a rollicking live performance from Murray and the musicians in attendance, was a welcome reintroduction to the thrill of live music and communal concert-going after a year’s hiatus. With major concert tours and Broadway shows still on hold for the time being, “New Worlds” is an undeniable reminder of live music’s irreplaceable magic—and an entreaty not to forget it. [B]