This review will bring readers good news and bad news. The good news is that director Barry Rubinow's new documentary, "Banded Together: The Boys from Glen Rock High" is one terrific documentary. It's packed with laughter, sentiment and some great music, as he assembled some of his former classmates from the Glen Rock, New Jersey High School, which they attended in the early 1970s. All of the guys who formed an ad-hoc band went on to bigger and better things in the field of music and they credit their music teacher, Joel Sielski, with their success due to his inspirational methods of teaching. I recently saw the film screened on the final day of the Montclair Film Festival in New Jersey where it received a rousing reception. Rubinow was in attendance and hosted the band members, who have continued to perform together occasionally over the decades, on stage for a Q&A session. Most gratifying was that Joe Sielski, who figures prominently in the film, was there to accept the plaudits. The film is one of the best documentaries I've seen in many years but that leads me to divulging the bad news: you can't see it anywhere. That's because Rubinow has not been able to land a distribution deal anywhere and he's hoping the buzz from the festival will help him to do so.
The film presents the musicians (brothers Jimmy Vivino, Floyd Vivino and Jerry Vivino, Lee Shapiro, John Feeney, Frank Pagano, Doug Romoff and Jeff Venho) as they assemble once again to perform some sets and sit for group interviews with Joe Sielski. They talk a great deal about their hometown of Glen Rock, New Jersey, a small suburban town with a population of 12,000 in north Jersey defined by its unique centerpiece in the middle of town: a giant rock that weighs 570 tons and is said to be 15,000 years old. All have fond memories of the place and most still live in town or nearby. You don't have to be from Jersey to appreciate their humorous tales but it helps if you are tuned in to Jersey Guy traditions such as never saying a kind word to your friends and expressing sentiment towards them through ball-busting put-downs. Funniest of all is the most celebrated of the group, Floyd Vivino, who is a Jersey comedy legend who is known as Uncle Floyd. His unabashed old-fashioned shtick is in the tradition of Rodney Dangerfield and Henny Youngman. (In the Q&A, Floyd imitated Don Corleone, saying "I told Sonny to use EZ-Pass!", a reference to the car tag device New Jersey drivers use to breeze through the toll booths without stopping.) The guys relive how fabulous it was to grow up in a period when music was so exciting and inspiring. Some of them went on to play in bands with the likes of Bruce Springsteen, the Ramones, Frankie Valli, Tony Bennett and other exalted names. Conan O'Brien appears in various segments extolling their talents, as Jimmy Vivino was a member of his TV show's band.
"Banded Together" is a fun ride throughout, especially if you came of age in the 1970s. It's also great to see a film in which a teacher is a revered hero. Kudos to Barry Rubinow for turning his labor-of-love into a highly entertaining experience that is truly is a "must-see". Hopefully, there will be a place to actually see it soon. We'll keep readers posted.