Step Across the Border  (1990)

Theatrical Release Information:
Step Across the Border

Fans of avant-garde jazz and blues performance will appreciate this avant-garde documentary, which intersperses discussions with Fred Frith and his band with rehearsal and concert footage. From time to time the filmmakers indulge in a bit of jazz of their own, screening seemingly random images with a meaning and order which is known only to them. The musicians, who are never identified, are expert improvisationalists, and are prone to using whatever object is at hand in order to explore the limits of sound. Occasionally, the band members indulge in a bit of philosophizing for the camera, in one instance telling a Zen-inspired story about "one hand clapping." ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide