Imax “All Access” experience

Lisa Haley

Sit face to face with some of the music industry?s biggest names at the IMAX?s newest film, All Access: Front Row. Backstage. Live!

This film is nothing short of amazing. It combines the giant IMAX screen experience with a front row seat and a back stage pass to experience some of your favorite rock stars singing, sweating and talking about the cross-cultural phenomenon–music! Dave Matthews Band, Al green, Macy Gray, B.B. King, Moby and Kid Rock are just examples of the mixed genres that appear through out All Access.

Sting performs a heart-felt version of his chart-topping love song, Desert Rose. After seeing and hearing this song at All Access, it is obvious that no stereo can really do it justice. The IMAX experience actually allows you to feel the beat and the passion that rai singer; Cheb Mami blends into Sting?s melody.

Alone on a rehearsal stage, Sheryl Crow sings a moving, acoustic version of “If It Makes You Happy.” Her casual dress and intimate setting makes it feelas if she is singing at a private party just for you and your neighbor at the theater.

Carlos Santana and Matchbox Twenty*s Rob Thomas perform their electrifying, GRAMMY Award winning song, Smooth. And as if the combination of Santana?sguitar work and Thomas*s vocals weren’t enough–ladies imagine the experience of a larger than life Rob Thomas singing and dancing before your eyes. Breathtaking is the only word to describe it.

Between sets, the cameras take you behind the scenes to converse with the stars. They discuss their love for music and some of their motivation behind the passion. The discussion makes the viewer realize that these are more than just rock stars, they are real people.

The IMAX experience took All Access from being an interesting documentary to an extraordinary piece of artwork. The huge screen (IMAX screens can be up to 80-feet high and 100-feet wide) sits you in a sort of VIP area of the concert, only better. There is never anyone or anything getting between you and the musician, not even the stage. You can practically feel their sweat dripping onto the crowd.

The digital surround sound offers concert-scale sound that is perfectly mixed and distortion-free, which actually makes the live music sound better than you would hear at a live concert. Not to mention, when you leave the theater, your hearing is still functioning properly. The IMAX sound system allows you to hear the music as it should be heard, and on a higher level, how it should be felt.

All Access: Front Row. Back Stage. Live! Is an extraordinary way to experience one of the world?s most beloved art forms. Most everybody has a favorite artist that they would do anything to meet. This film lets you meet several of them, and fortunately, this time there aren?t any security guards holding you back.

All Access: Front Row. Back Stage. Live! gets a perfect score: five out of five Sinatras!